Here’s the link for the previous piece: https://www.brazzil.com/articles/223-august-2010/10413-our-ship-sank-off-brazils-coast-in-march-2007-we-are-still-here-held-hostage.html

What is really holding us hostage is the glaring lack of enforcement of Brazilian law.  There is a judicial system here operating in a vacuum, therefore meaningless.  I don’t pretend to be a legal expert, especially in a country that is not my native country nor is Portuguese my native language. 

However, all I can conclude is the system is broken, going around and around in circles, a travesty of what rule of law means, a system so ineffective that it really encourages abuse of the worst kind.

We waited the entire year of 2010 for the higher court (segunda instância) to decide on Luiz Prado’s (managing partner of the RENAMAN/SAPECA boatyard) appeal of the lower court’s decision in December 2009.  They denied his appeal and this means our opponent, who sued us in the first place, lost. 

Therefore we paid the 8 reais (US$ 4) fine the lower court had imposed on us and that should have been that.  Our boat, our property, our home should have been returned to us. It wasn’t. It still hasn’t been.

With new lawyers, we filed a new petition, requesting the new sitting judge (titular) to rule that Lord Jim be returned to the water safely and in conditions of navigability.  In his favorable ruling on July 14, 2011, the judge also included a deadline of thirty days and a fixed fine of 50,000 (US$ 25,000) reais if Luiz Prado didn’t co-operate.

They, the enemy, Luiz Prado and his lawyer son, Flávio Prado, did two things.  First they petitioned the judge to extend the deadline to 90 days, a very reasonable request, to which the judge agreed.  At the same time, they filed an Interlocutory (interim) appeal called an Agravo de Instrumento to the higher court requesting that the decision made by the lower court judge be reversed and that they – Luiz Prado and RENAMAN/SAPECA boatyard – be freed from any responsibility for putting Lord Jim into conditions of navigability, launching her safely and paying the fixed fine of 50,000 reais.

Luiz Prado and his lawyer son, Flávio Prado, got caught in their own tracks, once again it seems.  For one, they filed their Agravo carelessly, ignoring required procedures, and therefore were forced to withdraw their appeal on grounds of legal negligence. 

Immediately they petitioned the sitting judge with a “Notification” consisting of a document notarized by a local notary business which implied that Luiz Prado/RENAMAN/SAPECA wished to comply with the order of the judge, a complete reversal in their tactics up until now. 

The boatyard would launch Lord Jim well within the 90 day time frame conceded by this judge.  The soonest dates for high water which Lord Jim’s deep keel requires for launching fell between October 24 and 27, 2011. 

Flávio Prado went to speak (despachar) with the judge and convinced him of his father’s goodwill, which in fact was an act of premeditated deception on their part.  Flávio Prado represented to the judge that the boat was ready to go into the water, floatable and navigable at this time, when the truth was no repairs or maintenance of any nature by the boatyard had taken place whatsoever since the work of rebuilding the hull was completed by the end of the year 2008. 

Without a doubt, Lord Jim would have sunk directly in front of the slipway if she had been launched at this time.  Clearly, this is Luiz Prado’s goal, to destroy our property and therefore us.  And these people present themselves as model citizens, upstanding members of their community, churchgoers to boot.

One of our lawyers, who is more local rather than from Rio, was propitiously on top of this new situation and with our other two lawyers, went to see (despachar) the judge on the very same day he (the judge) had written his decision in favor of launching Lord Jim on the high water time schedule Flávio Prado had recommended. 

In bad faith, Flávio Prado consciously concealed the fact that no work had been done to put Lord Jim into conditions of navigability, as the judge had originally ordered.  Flávio Prado, an officer of the court, had stood lying before the judge, shamelessly deceiving and misleading him, making a fool out of him, and therefore the Brazilian judicial system itself.  This wasn’t the first time or the last.

In Portuguese, the word for deceive and defraud is “enganar” and it fits this duo perfectly.

An example which will help explain why we haven’t gone out and hired private contractors to get work Lord Jim needs completed is because we know Luiz Prado will, in the end, sabotage, the boat.  In 2007, we had hired a mechanic recommended by Luiz Prado and paid him (the mechanic) in advance two thirds of his bill for the rebuild of our main engine. 

Long before the mechanic could complete his job, Luiz Prado prohibited his entry into the boatyard.  This was in July 2007 and, to this day, he is still keeping pressure on our mechanic, who lives right down the road from us and our boat, to not complete the engine job. 

Our lawyers quickly submitted another petition on October 20th reasserting our original stipulations that the boat be returned to conditions of floatability and navigability with a new addition: that all the repairs RENAMAN/SAPECA need to make for Lord Jim to be seaworthy be overseen and approved of by the Brazilian Navy, which is the authoritative entity that administers all maritime matters in Brazil. 

The judge immediately approved our requests and also instructed by letter to the Navy Commander whose jurisdiction is our district, Mangaratiba, to urgently verify the current conditions of the boat and the boatyard’s equipment. 

The judge designated the Navy responsible ultimately for the seaworthiness of the boat and her safe launching into the water.  The naval officers came the next day (October 21) to the RENAMAN/SAPECA boatyard and completed an inspection of the premises and Lord Jim and subsequently submitted their list of repairs for the boat to the court.

Of course, another petition by Flávio Prado, lawyer/son of entrepreneur/land shark Luiz Prado, was filed raving to the judge that he is being lied to by us, made a fool of by us and that Lord Jim has been dry-docked for so long that the boatyard is losing money since they have to pay for a night guard and cannot use our slip for more business while we are still occupying it. 

Actually the yard has 8 other slips and the night guard is protecting the other boats which are hauled out in them.  Luiz Prado’s boatyard business has not stopped by any means due to the fact that he has been holding Lord Jim hostage. 

These endless petitions which this father-son team keep filing against us in bad faith are mindboggling in the myriad convoluted assertions they make, none of which are based on fact, at least, the particular assertions that refer to their innocence and our culpability. 

How do we know how to manipulate a justice system of a country we are not native to not to mention the fact that neither my husband nor myself spoke one word of Portuguese upon our arrival to Brazil in October 2006.

In the Brazilian judicial system the modus operandi is basically once one side has entered a petition the other side should enter one as well.  And this activity goes on ad infinitum.  Every judicial decision can be appealed, forever.  Our lawyers wrote a brilliant 13 point petition conveying so explicitly and concisely that Luiz Prado and his lawyer/son shamelessly used the justice system to try to deceive the judge, to mislead and trick him in broad daylight, conducting themselves in utter bad faith. 

On December 15, 2011, the last day in session before the courts recessed for the Christmas holidays, the judge handed down the following decision:

a) the fixed fine of 50.000 reais is to be paid now

b) all the work designated necessary by the Navy must be completed in a new timeframe which the judge will determine, and once determined, if the work is not carried out in that timeframe, a daily fine of 30,000 reais will commence.

c) notification of the Prosecutor’s Office for eventual investigation of the commission of a crime.

d) the issuance of an arrest warrant for disobedience, contempt of court, against the manager of the RENAMAN/SAPECA boatyard.

This order was published on January 27, 2012 and therefore irrevocably the judge’s final decision.  The subpoena was delivered and signed on February 14, 2012 by the husband of Luiz Prado’s partner Daisy Meanda, Salvador Rodrigues, who now has become Luiz Prado’s fall guy, his dupe; actually his guilty scapegoat as we were soon to find out. 

Holger and I started this year (2012) with so much hope and lots of good energy.  We thought we would be able to get going on all the work which poor Lord Jim needs done due to these years of pretty thorough neglect, more than 3 years of being held hostage. 

We really believed we would get our boat, our property, back into our possession and into the water where she belongs.  We really believed we had the law unquestionably on our side.  We had such a strong judicial decision in our favor, that our property would certainly be returned to us in a condition whereby our boat is floating and can maneuver on her own.  Then we could take her to a safe location to complete her restoration.

We still didn’t understand the reality that the legal system in Brazil doesn’t work, that it is broken. It doesn’t work for any one, that is, anyone who is honest.

Now it is August 2012 and Lord Jim is still held prisoner in the same dry slip in the Estaleiro RENAMAN/SAPECA, Mangaratiba, Rio de Janeiro, none of the work ordered to make her seaworthy having taken place. 

Salvador Rodrigues is now the acting general manager for RENAMAN/SAPECA boatyard, Luiz Prado’s puppet.  Cowardly Luiz Prado has removed himself from the scene of the crime, so to speak, since he must be afraid the police are coming to arrest him. 

And the destruction of a beautiful historic sailing craft with a distinguished history and thousands of sea miles under her keel is inexorably proceeding right before our eyes.  The decision of the judge is meaningless. 

This man, Luiz Prado and his partner, Daisy Meanda with their company Estaleiro RENAMAN/SAPECA are seemingly above the law and do not have to obey ANY sentence of ANY court.

These Brazilians (who must hate us so much) won’t quit in their keen mania to destroy our property and thereby us, since we haven’t yet “disappeared” to let them steal Lord Jim the easy way.  Luiz Prado and his son Flávio, continued to abuse the justice system by filing a Writ of Security (Mandado de Segurança) on February 28, 2012 against the judge himself, with the underlying insinuation being that the judge had been “coerced” and therefore unfair to Luiz Prado in his decision. 

This Writ of Security is similar to a Writ of Mandamus and concerns the severe infringement on individual rights.  The blatant arrogance and shameless disrespect of such a legal motion against a sitting judge is jarring to my concept of who and what judges are really supposed to be. 

I’m sure I remain relatively idealistic and naive, especially when it comes to officers of the court here in Brazil.   A Writ of Security is an extreme measure in any country where it is allowed, to protect individual human rights, therefore how alarming it is to digest the fact that  Luiz Prado is claiming his rights have been denied!  

What a sleight of hand he deals.  What evil machinations he so easily fabricates.  Luiz Prado (with the son certified as a lawyer) has an evil way to twist upside down the truth and desperately abuse the legal process to try to get what he wants, which is exoneration.  Luiz Prado wants to get away scot free with extortion, fraud and theft of property among other crimes.

We are his victims, victims of unlimited vexatious litigation driven by his relentless misanthropy and unfettered greed.  The Writ of Security was filed on February 28th to the higher court in Rio de Janeiro (Segunda Instâncía) where cases and their decisions proceed even more glacially than in the lower courts.

In any case, however these things come about, the decision was made and by June 13th once again Flávio Prado lost.  The higher court not only denied the Writ of Security, it also emphasized that the decisions made in the lower court in our favor stand and are in active force. 

With a daily fine equal to US$ 15,000  running since mid-March we are multi-millionaires.  (And remember the bonus fixed fine long past due equal to US$25,000).  These outrageous sums, which have become a local joke for those that know, will never be paid and we accept this easily as reality.  The knock-your-breath-out-of-you tragedy is losing our beloved boat, our home, our means to make a living, our way of life, our passion.

The higher court decision on the Writ of Security was published June 25, 2012 in the official daily diary of the Court of Rio de Janeiro state.  Luiz Prado remains in flagrant contempt of court, which is known here as disobedience and this week our attorneys submitted a petition to a new temporary judge in our lower court, for his arrest. 

We await this decision if any.  Lord Jim destroys a little bit more every day.  Every day we go to see Lord Jim in her slip in Luiz Prado and Daisy Meanda’s boatyard, RENAMAN/SAPECA.

Last week, we started a petition on AVAAZ.org and we welcome all of you whoever and wherever you are, to please sign: http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Free_LORD_JIM/  This petition will go to the Governor of the State, Sergio Cabral, and to the Marinha do Brasil, Capitania dos Portos, Itacuruçá, RJ. 

In addition to my sailing career, I am a NAUI Dive Master and a documentary film producer. You may write me at: moana.rere@yahoo.com.

A Brazilian Red Cross helicopter carrying police officers Walter Lozano, Alexis Torres and Juan Fernando Galicia and soldier William Dominguez landed at an airport in Villavicencio, southeast of Bogotá, shortly before 7 p.m. Sunday.

The men – some of whom had been held for several years, the Red Cross said – waved as they stepped off the chopper and were met by well-wishers carrying white flowers.

Many of those who greeted the men were from Colombians for Peace, the group that initiated the hostage release.

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), which has been battling the government for decades, handed the men over to the Red Cross earlier Sunday.

The Colombian government says FARC is still holding about 700 captives. But many analysts see this week's planned release of a total of six hostages as the first step toward an eventual peace accord with the government.

The rebels announced the hostage release December 21. A Colombian delegation led by Senator Piedad Cordoba, who brokered a previous hostage release in 2007, left Friday for Brazil to make final arrangements.

On Tuesday, Cordoba's delegation is scheduled to travel to another site designated by the FARC to pick up the governor of the Meta state, Alan Jara, who was abducted in 2001.

The delegation then will receive instructions from FARC on how and where to proceed in the third and final leg Wednesday to collect Sigifredo Lopez, a former official in the city of Valle del Cauca, who was kidnapped in 2003.

The Colombian government has recently stepped up pressure on the rebels, offering rewards to the guerrillas if they surrender and free their hostages. Earlier this month, two guerrillas fled their camp deep in the jungles of southern Colombia, bringing along two kidnap victims – a 14-year-old boy and a male adult who were kidnapped in December.

A journalist accompanying the mission reported that military flights over the jungle had complicated and delayed the handover.  The Colombian government called the allegations unfounded.  The hostages are among six captives the FARC said it would release this week.

Later Monday, the rebels are expected to release Alan Jara, a former governor kidnapped in 2001.  Former lawmaker Sigifredo Lopez is expected to be freed on Wednesday.  Lopez was abducted in 2002.`

The FARC is Colombia's most powerful rebel group.  It has been designated as a terrorist organization by Colombia, the European Union and the United States.

Last year, the FARC was dealt a blow when government soldiers posing as members of a humanitarian group freed 15 prominent hostages, including French-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt and three American citizens.

Bzz/Mercopress

The action, according to the indians, was taken to press Funai to fulfill commitments already made, such as those of providing a truck for transporting indigenous people, inspecting indigenous lands to avoid their devastation, and implementing projects for ensuring the livelihood of the indians,

"We’ve been having meetings for a long time in the São José village. The manager came and promised that he would make a car available to us to transport our people. We have a truck without brakes and two tractors that are not working.

"The manager said that he had the funds to fix the cars since 2004, but he never fixed them. Many months went by without him coming here and now he’s back again. Now, they will have to negotiate these things with us," justified one of the leaders of the Apinajé people, who live in the mid-west region of Brazil, in the state of Tocantins.

According to the indigenous leader, the truck is used for transporting indigenous people – usually people going to the city to sell products and retired individuals who must go there to receive their pensions – to Tocantinópolis, a city located at about 20 km from their village.

The vehicles which transport the indigenous people in many places are in terrible conditions and, as a result, six of them died in Rondônia in January 2006 in an accident.

The indigenous people were informed that funds were available to fix the tractor of the community, but they were never fixed.

"Funai promised to give us areas to grow our crops and wire fences but they always say later that they have no funds," one of the leaders said, who also mentioned that their land had been invaded by hunters, fishermen and woodcutters and that Funai had not been inspecting it to prevent such occurrences.

"If the extraction of timber is to stop in our land it must be permanently inspected and we must have a car," he said.

According to information provided by the Apinajé, the regional manager of Funai in Araguaina got in touch with the indigenous leaders by phone, but they requested the presence of the director of the agency in the Apinajé land to carry out negotiations.

Cimi – www.cimi.com.br

The search for the Brazilian engineer, João José Vasconcelos, Jr., kidnapped 11 days ago in Iraq, is being enlarged under the auspices of representatives of Brazil’s Muslim community.

Haidar Abu Talib, councilor of the Rio de Janeiro Muslim Philanthropic Society, disclosed that a note was sent to the Arab TV network, Al-Jazeera, appealing to Muslim leaders in Iraq to make it clear that Brazil is in no way involved as a belligerent in the country’s conflicts and calling for the Brazilian’s release.

The Brazilian hostage works for the Norberto Odebrecht Construction Company and was assigned to an Iraqi electric plant. He was the victim of an ambush by the Al-Majahideen group, in cahoots with the radical leader, Ansar al Sunna, linked to Osama Bin Laden’s Al Qaeda terrorist network.

In the note sent to the TV networks requesting Vasconcelos Jr.’s release, the Rio de Janeiro Muslim Philanthropic Society underscores the Brazilian nation’s and people’s solidarity with “the Iraqi people’s resistance fight.”

The note recalls that this “was clearly demonstrated by the official position of the Brazilian government, which never supported the invasion of Iraq by foreign armies, nor dispatched soldiers or any other type of armed troops or war material to be used against the Iraqi people.”

In the message, the organization points out that Brazil’s Muslim community is made up of people of diverse origins who coexist with, respect, and receive the respect of those who profess other faiths.

The Muslim Society’s note also emphasizes that the engineer’s family, despite the suffering caused by his absence, “never once failed to show regard and consideration for the Iraqi people and confide in their good sense, sense of justice, and mercy,” in consonance with the teachings of the Koran.

Translation: David Silberstein
Agência Brasil

The Brazilian Minister of Foreign Relations, Celso Amorim, launched an appeal for the release of José Jorge Vasconcelos Júnior, a 49 year-old Brazilian engineer who was taken hostage last Wednesday, January 19. in Iraq.

“These facts are even more incomprehensible in light of the fact that he is a citizen of a country that obviously didn’t back the war. We are making an appeal that is humanitarian in nature,” Amorim informed.

The Minister recalled that the Brazilian government has been accompanying the case since its inception, remaining in touch with the presidency of the Odebrecht construction company, Vasconcelos’s employer.

“We are not only keeping track, but we are also mobilizing all possible information channels and preparing the company for whatever actions may be necessary,” the Chancellor said in a collective interview.

Brazilian Ambassador Affonso Celso de Ouro-Preto, special representative to the Middle East, left today for Amman, Jordan. There he will help in the negotiations for the release of the Brazilian engineer.

Amorim revealed that President Lula plans to make a telephone call to an important Arab leader. The leader’s name was not disclosed.

“To maintain these channels requires a certain degree of discretion,” Amorim explains.

According to the Minister, Brazil has exchanged information with countries that have experience with similar situations.

Translation: David Silberstein
Agência Brasil