"Development first" in the G-20 and the BRICS? Reflections on Brazil’s foreign politics and civil society
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2012
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University of Cape Town
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Ever since the Workers’ Party (PT) came to power in 2002, analysts have been puzzled by Brazil’s economic and foreign policies. Even the harshest critics of former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva praised his foreign policy strategy, which seemed to truly reflect the ideals of the Workers’ Party in defending national sovereignty, solidarity between developing countries, and Latin American integrity. On the other hand, Lula’s economic policy choices upset many of his supporters, who saw them as not being faithful to the PT’s beliefs (Bourne 2008). Lula’s background (he was from a poor family in the northeast, a militant, and a steelworker unionist) led to high expectations for improvements in the lives of the poorest. At the same time, international investors panicked when the leftist leader was first elected. This essay explores the entanglement between economic policy and foreign policy and the tradeoffs between developmental choices. It looks at foreign and economic policies and Brazil’s engagement in various economic groups: G-20; BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa); BASIC (Brazil, South Africa, India, China); and IBSA (India, Brazil, South Africa). The essay proposes two main arguments. Firstly, although the PT’s foreign politics received wide appraisal among scholars and analysts, Lula’s strategy consistently supported his controversial economic development policy. Whenever environmental and social costs clashed, the PT administration pursued a clear approach to “development first.” The conservative interpretation of “development first” created controversy among the party’s supporters.
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Rennkamp, B. (2013). "Development First" in the G-20 and the BRICS? Reflections on Brazil’s foreign politics and civil society. Inside a champion: In Heinrich Böll Foundation (Ed.), An Analysis of the Brazilian Development Model, (pp. 156-170). Rio de Janeiro: Heinrich Böll Stiftung.