University of Central Florida STARS Honors Undergraduate Theses UCF Theses and Dissertations 2018 Corruption: Brazil's Everlasting Parasite Patricia Vilhena University of Central Florida Part of the Growth and Development Commons, International Economics Commons, International Relations Commons, Latin American Studies Commons, Other Political Science Commons, and the Political Economy Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/honorstheses University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the UCF Theses and Dissertations at STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors Undergraduate Theses by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Recommended Citation Vilhena, Patricia, "Corruption: Brazil's Everlasting Parasite" (2018). Honors Undergraduate Theses. 320. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/honorstheses/320 CORRUPTION: BRAZIL’S EVERLASTING PARASITE BY PATRICIA VILHENA A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Honors in the Majors Program in Political Science in the College of Sciences and in the Burnett Honors College at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Spring Term, 2018 Thesis Chair: Houman Sadri, Ph.D. i ABSTRACT The purpose of this thesis is to explore corruption in Brazil, how it has endured for so such a long period, and the effects it has in the country. Understanding the history of Brazil, how the government was established, and how the branches operate is crucial to comprehend the rooting causes of the Brazilian corruption. The focus is not just about what corruption is and the effects it has on education, economy, and infrastructure, but also on the factors that contributed to its expansion and the circumstances that allowed it to sustain until today. Brazil is a country known for its natural beauty, great food, inviting people, but also for the never-ending problems with corruption. Unfortunately, corruption has been part of Brazil’s history since the beginning of its colony, and it has been hard to remove it from its culture since then. The country has been affected by corruption for centuries, especially on economy and development, and it is one of the main reasons Brazil has been stagnated compared to other developing states. Lack of money or natural resources are not a problem preventing the country from being a major power, but rather the extensive practice of corruption in politics and the socially accepted mentality of being corrupt. The cultural factor is a huge problem in Brazil and it is major problem adding to the expansion of corruption. Brazil not only needs a political reform, but also a culture reform to have positive changes in the government, otherwise everything will continue to be the same or even worse. ii DEDICATION First and foremost, I would like to thank my incredible mother Elizabeth for always dedicating her life in pro of mine. She thought me to be a better person and fight for what is right, not only for me but for everyone. She has always supported and inspired me to chase my dreams, no matter how big they were. I’m forever grateful to have been raised by such an amazing woman. I would also like to dedicate this thesis to anyone who seeks to make a difference in the world. I hope my work can bring some knowledge and inspire people to fight for a just and moral society. iii ACKNOWLEGDMENTS I would like to thank my thesis chair Dr. Houman Sadri for being such an incredible mentor. It has been a tremendous pleasure to be on this journey with him. I cannot express enough how thankful I am for his guidance, advice, and motivation when writing my thesis. All his knowledge and compassion have been crucial to expand my writing skills and make me a better student. I would also like to thank Dr. Sandra Sousa for being such a supportive and wonderful professor. Her kindness and thoughtfulness are very admirable and inspiring. I am very thankful for her wiliness to assist and guide me through my thesis. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................1 Brazil’s History ........................................................................................................................1 Corruption Roots .....................................................................................................................2 Corrupt Culture .......................................................................................................................3 Education and Social Class Inequalities ................................................................................4 Education Resource Allocation ...............................................................................................7 Voting System ...........................................................................................................................9 CHAPTER 2: ECONOMY .........................................................................................................12 Corruption Index ...................................................................................................................12 Brazil’s Economy ..................................................................................................................14 Petrobras Scandal .................................................................................................................15 Corruption Damage ..............................................................................................................17 CHAPTER 3: JUDICIARY ........................................................................................................22 Brazil as an Empire ..............................................................................................................22 Constitutional History ...........................................................................................................23 Judicial Branch .....................................................................................................................24 Judicial Inefficacy .................................................................................................................26 Shift in the Judiciary .............................................................................................................28 Political Investigations and Sentences ..................................................................................30 CHAPTER 4: ABUSE OF POWER ...........................................................................................33 v Brasilia’s Development .........................................................................................................33 Efforts to Become a Powerful Nation ...................................................................................34 What Collapsed Brazil ..........................................................................................................35 Schemes and Misconducts .....................................................................................................37 Police Corruption and Abusive Power .................................................................................40 New Shift in Politics ..............................................................................................................42 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................44 Comparison Table .................................................................................................................46 Approaches to Lower Corruption .........................................................................................51 Eliminate Impunity ................................................................................................................51 Rectification of Finance Administration ...............................................................................52 Promotion of Transparency and Information .......................................................................52 Citizen’s Empowerment ........................................................................................................53 Cease International Loopholes ............................................................................................53 vi LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Factors and Chapter Cases Linkage ..............................................................................52 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Corruption Index Map ...................................................................................................24 viii Chapter 1: Introduction Brazil’s History Brazil is a country known for its natural beauty, great food, inviting people, but also for the never-ending problems with corruption. When Brazil was discovered by the Portuguese in 1500, they were on an expedition, commanded by the diplomat Pedro Álvares Cabral, on the way to India but ended up landing on the North-East shores of Brazil. Once the colonizers arrived, they were met by the local Indians. Brazil had attractive riches, so the goal was simple: exploit the profitable trade of pau-brasil (a national tree used to extract dye that also gave origins to Brazil’s name), and establish a permanent settlement (Fonseca). Later, the Portuguese discovered the land was incredibly fertile, which increased the demand for labor, but unfortunately