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The World for All

In a recent debate which took place in the United States I was asked what was my opinion on the internationalisation of the Amazon forest. The young man started the question saying that he expected the answer of a humanist, not a Brazilian. That was the first time a felow debater chose the humanist viewpoint as the starting point of one of my replies.

Truth is that, as a Brazilian, I would indeed just talk against the internationalisation of the Amazon forest. Even though our governments show a careless attitude towards this patrimony, it is still ours.

I replied saying that, as a humanist, being aware of the risk of environmental degradation which the Amazon forest is undergoing, I could accept it's internationalisation as well as the internationalisation of everything else that is important to humankind.

If the Amazon forest, under a humanist viewpoint, should be internationalised, let us then internationalise the petroleum reserves of the whole world. The petroleum is as important to the well-being of humanity as the Amazon forest to our future. However, what we see is the owners of the reserves having the right to increase or decrease the extraction levels and to increase or not it's price according to their financial interests. The rich of the world have the right to burn this huge patrimony of humankind.

In an equal manner, the financial capital of the rich countries should also be internationalised. If the Amazon forest is a reserve for all human beings it cannot be burned according to the will of a single owner or country. Burning the Amazon is as critical as the massive unemployment caused by arbitrary decisions of global speculators. We cannot let the financial reserves cause the fall of entire countries subjugated by the greed of financial/market speculation. Before the Amazon forest I would like to see the internationalisation of all the greatest museums of the world.

The Louvre should not belong only to France any longer. Each museum of the world is the guardian of the most beautiful pieces produced by the human genius. Such cultural patrimony, as well as the Amazon, cannot be manipulated and destroyed while under the control of a single owner or country. Not a long time ago a Japanese millionaire decided to have a great master's painting buried with him – before that, the piece should have been internationalised.

During the conference where I was asked that question, the United Nations were organising the Millenium Forum, but some of the presidents had problems to attend due to embarrassments at the USA customs/borders. Therefore I suggested that New York, as the official host and HQ of the United Nations, should be internationalised. At least Manhattan should now belong to the whole humankind as well as Paris, Venice, Rome, London, Rio de Janeiro, Brasilia, Recife. Each city with it's own beauty, it's own part of the world history, should belong to the world.

If the USA wish to internaltionalise the Amazon forest not to run the risk of letting it in the Brazilian people's hands, let us then internationalise all the nuclear arsenal of the USA. Particularly because they have already proven that they are well able to use those weapons, being responsible for damages infinitely superior to the unfortunate burning and cutting down of trees carried out in Brazilian forests.

During the recent presidential elections debates, the North-American candidates have strongly argued in favor of the internationalisation of forestal reserves of the world against the absolution of each country's external debt. Lets start by using such debt to assure that every child of the world has the chance to go to school.

Lets then internationalise the children and treat them all, regardless country of birth, as a patrimony that deserves worldwide care. Even more than the Amazon itself should deserve.

When the world dirigistees [G8] decide to treat the impoverished children of the world as a humankind patrimony they will not allow them to work while they should be in school or to die when they should live.

As a humanist I accept to argue in favor of the internationalisation of the world. But as long as the world treats me as a Brasilian I will fight for the Amazon to be ours, the Brasilians. Only ours.

This is a free translation to English of an article published in Portuguese by the Brasilian newspaper "O Globo", on the 23rd of october, 2000.

The original article can be found below. The reference to the G8 as
dirigistees was not in the original text. It was added by the translator in the lack of a better word as "dirigistees" is a bit unusual.

Please pass the word on if you consider it worthwhile.