Irene Lôbo
Reporter Agência Brasil

Brasília – The head of the Special Secretariat for Policies to Promote Racial Equality (Seppir), minister Matilde Ribeiro, says that Brazil is just in the first stages of building up government policies that promote racial equality. "The Negro population in Brazil is not a minority. It is actually around 50% of the population. So this is not a case of setting up more public policy in a tandem arrangement with other policies. This is really a problem of social inclusion," declared the minister.

Ribeiro participated in an international panel on racial inequality at the University of Brasilia which discussed the problem in Cuba, Palestine and Cameroon. She said the panel showed her that what the countries have in common is a desire to achieve peace and protect human rights, although each country has different problems in the area. "The panel gave us a look at the living history of these countries. It was excellent preparation for the first national (Brazilian) conference," she said.

The First National Conference on the Promotion of Racial Equality begins today in Brasilia.

Translator: Allen Bennett