President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defended today (25) the greater presence of women in politics. On the last day of his trip to Argentina and Uruguay, Lula received a tribute from the Montevideo City Hall and said that he would work to unify Latin America’s thinking again.
Lula received the Más Verde medal from the mayor of the Uruguayan capital, Carolina Cosse, in recognition of the efforts made by his actions in defense of the environment. One of the main cadres of the Frente Ampla, a center-left party that opposes the center-right government of President Lacalle Pou, manages the city with parity in the team between men and women. The Brazilian president praised the gender division in Uruguayan politics.
“Visiting Montevideo at a time when a woman, an engineer, runs this city, is something comfortable because, in my party, we have parity [de gênero] in the direction of the party. I learned that here in Montevideo there is also parity. This is an extraordinary advance. It is a sign that women no longer need to ask for permission to be where they want to be”, declared Lula in a speech in the square in front of the city hall.
The Brazilian president also defended the strengthening of Mercosur and the political union of Latin America. “It’s only been 20 days since I assumed the presidency of Brazil and one of the things that made me return to being president is that I want to build unity in South America and strengthen Mercosur so that we can once again become a very strong bloc and to improve people’s lives,” added Lula.
According to Lula, Brazil needs to use the size of the country, economy and industrial park to be “more generous” with Latin American countries and treat all nations in the region with respect. “Brazil must treat its relationship with the parties, with friendly countries, with great affection. When I travel to a country, I don’t worry about who is the president of the Republic, whether he is from the right, from the left, from the center. The attitude is to treat any head of state of our dear South America with respect,” he said.
Pepe Mujica
After the homage, Lula met with the former Uruguayan president, José Pepe Mujica and his wife, Lucia, who received him at their farm, near Montevideo. Under tents set up in the property’s garden, the two leaders spoke for a few minutes, accompanied by advisors.
In posts on social networks, Lula said that the meeting dealt with “politics, life and Latin America”, with a video that showed a hug between the two. The former Uruguayan president also posted a photo in which he reported on the meeting “between two fighters from our Latin America”.
