Brazzil

The Lefts are amusing. They've always stood up for banditism, claiming that criminality is a product of poverty. When governor Sérgio Cabral Filho, from Rio de Janeiro, supports abortion as a method to reduce violence in the State and says that Rocinha favela (slum), in Rio's south side, is a "bad guy producing factory" it's a pretty kettle of fish.

We are witnessing something almost unparalleled in the corridors of power in Brasília and governors' palaces all over Brazil - politicians of all parties trying to reach agreement on an important issue that has nothing to do with individuals, corruption or incompetence but about holding a government to its word and making it responsible to the public.