Low Morale

The morale of the Brazilian army is low, judging from a report by Leonel Rocha published in Correio Brazilense. The recent suicides of two Generals, Urano Bacelar (Commander of the peacekeeping force in Haiti) and Luiz Alfredo Jeffe (Minas Gerais State army chief) have added to unprecedented levels of frustration in the military, due to low pay and lack of equipment.

“In the last six years, more than 600 have left the army, navy and air force, trading the uniform for a career in another sector of public service or in private enterprise. In just the first two months of this year, there were around 40 discharges. Nearly all have left the profession earlier than they should have in order to supplement their retirement by working in another area in the reserves,” reports Rocha.

This trend could affect the Brazilian dream of gaining a seat in the UN Security Council.