Itamaraty has canceled a book discussion event in Madrid to mark the 200th anniversary of Brazil’s independence. The incident happened while the writers were already in the Spanish capital and 24 hours after he was included in the official program that he was the author of a work denouncing fascism in the country.
Officially, the reason was the absence of Brazil’s ambassador to Spain at the event, which was still held in the first half of the year. However, in the regular practice of Itamaraty such absences are common, and an ambassador is always replaced by a diplomat from the chancellery, without any risk to events.
Called twice, Itamaraty did not respond to the events in Madrid and requested that the question be directed to the Brazilian embassy in the Spanish capital. However, there has been no response to the incident yet.
Sources linked to the organizers acknowledged the existence of pressure from Brazil on condition of anonymity.
The event will be dedicated to the discussion of Isabel Lucas’ book “Journey to the Country of the Future – Brazil through Books”. The person to argue with him would be Paulo Roberto Pires, editor of the literary magazine Serrote. He had been invited by the Portuguese embassy in Spain.
When he landed in Madrid on Tuesday, he said he had received a warning from the organizers that the event would be canceled due to the absence of the Brazilian ambassador. The Portuguese government announced to the UOL that it was against cancellation. However, I will ask the reporter to contact the Brazilian embassy for more details.
But the ambassador’s absence occurred after Pires was included in the program, where he was the author of “Facing Fascism, Diaries of a Country on the Edge of the Abyss.”
On social media, Isabel Lucas made a fuss over the cancellation of her event. « When you are silent, they become normal; when they scream on social media, they get lost in the hysteria of the day. What to do then? “, she asked.
“There is a dilemma and I’m trying to say that it can’t be normal. There should have been a talk around my book “Viagem ao País do Futuro”, moderated by the respected Brazilian journalist Paulo Roberto Pires, yesterday, September 15. Serrote magazine, columnist at 451, ” He is the author of Fascism, Diaries of a Country on the Edge of the Abyss.
“This would be the first of three meetings in which Ibero-American countries were to be represented, in this case by the Portuguese embassy in Madrid and the Camões Institute, also with the support of the Brazilian embassy in Madrid, to mark the 200th anniversary of Brazil’s independence. “The secretariat would be at SEGIB. The event has been held since May and always in cooperation with all organizations whose names have been informed with due expectation.”
“Paulo Roberto Pires traveled from Rio de Janeiro for this purpose alone and when he arrived in Madrid – at the request of Brazil’s SEGIB ambassador – as I was – he was informed of the cancellation request. By the same order,” he said.
“The Portuguese embassy claimed that it was a unilateral decision and did not review this decision. It was useless. SEGIB accepted the request of the Brazilian embassy. The day before the meeting, without further explanation,” he added.
The inconvenience was so great that on October 6, the next event of the lecture cycle with Anabela Mota Ribeiro and Tatiana Salem Levy was canceled until it became clear under what conditions the studies would be conducted.
source: Noticias
