Brasília - The Brazilian Chancellor, Celso Amorim, said that Brazil does not purport imposing a solution to the global hunger problem on any country. Amorim made this statement in response to the expressed intention of the American government not to provide a financial contribution in support of Brazil's proposal for the creation of a world fund to combat hunger. The proposal will be discussed in September by around 50 heads of State, in New York. "What we shall discuss are the methods. But we shall not impose; it is neither part of our tradition nor within our power to impose a solution on any country, much less on the United States."

The Minister pointed out that there should be a readiness among countries to discuss the issue, since democracy involves debating ideas. "We shall have to analyze all of this. And we want to move ahead. If there are better ideas than this one, fine, we shall be willing to accept them. Brazil does not possess a monopoly on ideas, nor does it want its ideas to monopolize the debate. We are very democratic," affirmed the Minister of Foreign Relations.

Amorim underlined that the United States has the right to adopt whatever position it desires on this matter, but he observed that "what the world cannot persist in doing is continuing to witness the death of millions of people, millions of children. What the world cannot do is see what you, perhaps, have not seen, but which I saw recently in Haiti, an intolerable level of poverty."

As for the instruments to make the creation of a global fund to combat poverty a reality, Amorim said that this will be the subject of debate at the September meeting among heads of State.

Agência Brasil
Reporter: Marcos Chagas
Translator: David Silberstein
08/23/2004