Brazil presidential elections 2014: Reason to defeat the extreme right represented by Aecio Neves of the PSDB

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The electoral situation has become dangerous. The comfortable position of "it's all the same" does not help solve the problem of who will win.

The June Journeys of 2013 marked the beginning of struggles for the new elections. The effort should be understood as long term, and it does not have a predictable outcome. The results of this new movement undoubtedly depends on the level of organization of the workers, the popular masses, and the ability to unify the people towards changes within Brazilian society. Therefore, we must make it clear: calls for change depend on creating favorable conditions for the present, which also includes a critical evaluation of electoral tactics. It's a serious political mistake to just bet on "better or worse".

It's clear we're facing a world-wide assault from the international monetary system in the form of economic crisis. There's a clear effort to prevent counter-revolution, counter-reform, and social reaction. The candidate seeking to fulfill these anti-national and unpopular measures in the next period with the most vigor is undoubtedly Aecio Neves of the Brazilian Social Democratic Party (PSDB).

He represents the right-wing radical opposition, which has direct links with mega-speculators like Soros, foreign investment banks (Merrill Lynch), retail banks (Santander), and oligarchs. The national bourgeoisie are in league with American imperialist interests and are aligned with the right-wing identity (as are most groups linked to the Millenium Institute which is directed by Armínio Fraga and chosen by Aecio to coordinate the Ministry of finance if elected, and who also have been complaining that the "minimum wage has grown a lot in the last few years").

The Aecio candidacy thrills and excites reactionary groups with their racist, fascist, homophobic, and xenophobic manifestations exemplified in their attitude against Northeasterners and the reduction in age of criminal responsibility. Aecio's candidacy represents an extreme pro-imperialism that promises to deliver the influence of the Central Bank (now subordinate to the Ministry of Finance) to unelected technocrats at the behest of the international monetary system. Aecio Neves represents the return to the "FHC era", which they now try to paint in golden colors. Legislation under Fernando Henrique Cardoso (FHC) eliminated legal distinctions between domestic and foreign companies, which facilitated the support of public institutions like the Brazilian Development Bank to transnational companies.

The three largest companies in the country - Petrobras, Vale do Rio Doce, and BR Distribuição ( which incur 16.1% of sales among the 500 largest companies) suffered deep and growing privatization. After the Oil Law of 1997, the two giant 'State' companies suffered from a strong shareholding stake and a resulting influence of the international monetary system. In the process of privatization, Vale was sold in a criminal and fraudulent manner by the FHC government for a tiny fraction (R$ 3.1 billion) of its value. At the time it's estimated value was more than R$ 1.5 trillion. In 2010 Vale's net income was R$ 30 billion, almost 10 times the price paid from privatization. In 2013 the company's revenue totaled R$ 104,25 billion. While employees pay up to 27.5% income tax, Vale pays 0.12% of its turnover. This Brazilian transnational pays one of the lowest tax rates and royalties of the world despite being the second largest mining company in the world, the largest iron ore producer, and the second largest producer of nickel.

But we want to underscore a crucial issue here. If elected, Aecio Neves main international task is to dismantle Latin American integration (i.e. Brazil's membership in Mercoser, Unasur and Celac), and to act as an internal agent on the continent in the attack against the anti-imperialist governance that has the broad popular support of Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela, Evo Morales in Bolivia and Rafael Correa in Ecuador. The American project of the FTAA (Free Trade Area of the Americas) was shelved due to the international campaign led by Hugo Chávez to voice the struggle of the Latin Americans, and due to the popular resistance movements in Brazil, such as the MST (Landless Workers Movement). However, the American imperialist strategy continues to seek new means of implementation.

The FTAA would mean much more than deeper ties with Western imperialism. The implementation of this treaty would mean a radical neo-colonial regression for the peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean, and it would lead to balkanization of Brazil. In this decisive aspect, there was a positive movement of Brazilian diplomacy under the Worker's Party (PT) Government, guiding it to give more weight to the south-south relations. This change is explained by the favorable international situation with the election of anti-imperialist and progressive presidents in several neighboring countries. Domestically it was significant that growing pressures emerged from of certain bourgeois factions with large investments in the country, defending the local industry against America's crushing influence. We should also highlight the struggle of the then Secretary-General of Foreign Affairs (2004-2009) Pinheiro Guimarães. At the Summit of the Americas in Mar le Plata (November 2005) Lula aligned with Chavez, Morales, Correia, Néstor Kirchner and other Latin American presidents and stopped the FTAA plans of Dubya Bush and his minions, Vicente Fox (former president of Coca-Cola and then president of Mexico) and the fascist Uribe (then narco-President of Colombia).

It is not a question of apologetically defending the Dilma Government nor of having the illusion that transformations will occur with a new mandate. Instead, we must not disregard facts that have a significant bearing on the struggles in the country and abroad. We know that the Dilma candidature is closely aligned with domestic financial interests. We see it in his relationship with sectors of the Brazilian bourgeoisie (generally associated with imperialism but who claim protection from the State to improve their position), the monopolistic capitalists interested in the State's decisions to prioritize purchases of local production (construction, naval industry, etc) and a south-south foreign policy that builds more favorable trading zones.

It's clear the PT Government has frustrated their base by moving away from the best things about the party's history, program, and discourse. In a 'transformism' that led to the demobilization of the proletarian and popular masses, emancipatory policies were abandoned and the means of struggle and of formation of class consciousness were blocked. This is why the PT has more responsibility regarding electoral performance now than from previous elections (in the first round of 2002, 2006, 2010, the PT received, respectively, 45.4%, 48.6% and 46.8% of the votes), in the first round of 2014 it was 41.5%. The priority given to maintaining power blocked the necessary confrontation with imperialism, monopolies and large estates. This engendered the power block responsible for the dependent nature of monopolistic Brazilian capitalism which has been increasingly subordinated to the international monetary system and therefore dominated by imperialist powers. And this in turn has caused the Brazilian people to suffer chronic social inequality.

On one hand the PT Government has made a move in the direction of making arrangements with factions of the bourgeois class that eventually integrated a capitalist management. But on the other hand Aecio Neves is wholly connected to the pro-imperialist, pro-privatization, elitist and fascists classes of the dominant power block. This analysis can only lead to the political position of defeating the PSDB's candidacy: the only anti-Aecio position is to vote for Dilma. The situation is grave. Although not voting is people's right, it is misleading because it will not address the difficult dilemma in which we find ourselves.

It's necessary to defeat Aecio Neves and regroup the people in order to build the organization of popular forces capable of implementing lasting changes. These changes include significant and urgent measures for transportation, public health, education, public safety, labor rights, as well as building participation and popular sovereignty for decision-making, land reform and urban reform.

Vote for Dilma to defeat Aecio Neves and to advance the formation of the popular block against imperialism, monopolies, large land estates, and towards socialism!

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