Economist.com Cities Guide: Sao Paulo Briefing - November 2005

News this month

Gun vote diplomacy

In the month before October 23rd's referendum on banning the sale of guns and ammunition in Brazil, it looked as if those in favour of a ban would win easily. But a loud campaign that centred on high crime rates and linked guns to self-defence and citizens’ rights eventually persuaded 64% of the population to vote against the ban. In São Paulo state the “no” margin was 60% to 40%; in the city, 58% to 42%. Only two towns in the state and three city districts—all with high murder rates—voted in favour.

So what happened? Commentators pointed to what they called the “reality gap”: in lower-crime areas, which came out against the ban, people are fearful of what might happen, not what does happen. But some residents in high-crime areas understand that better civic services, not guns, reduce crime. For example, Diadema, a city on São Paulo’s border that had the highest murder rate in the state six years ago, voted “yes” by a slim margin. New closing hours for bars and better policing helped account for a two-thirds drop in murders there in 2004.

Legislation deflation

São Paulo’s red tape has been getting out of hand, but that may start to change. The city has more than 14,000 laws and municipal orders on its books—including several dating back to the 1890s—and many hamper citizens rather than protect them. According to the World Bank, about 40% of small businesses operate illegally because registering is difficult and lengthy.

Two recent initiatives should help. On October 24th Mayor José Serra, fulfilling a campaign pledge, signed an agreement with the International Finance Corporation, the commercial arm of the World Bank, to find ways to shorten the time it takes to open a business in the city from 156 days to under 50. The city legislature is also pitching in: this month more than 3,600 outmoded laws are to be axed—a decent first step towards the goal of just 2,000 city laws and municipal orders.

The livin' is not so easy

It’s the country’s biggest, richest city, but São Paulo ranks just 11th out of Brazil’s 26 state capitals (and Brasilia) as a place to live. The Fundação Getúlio Vargas, a business school, analysed quality-of-life data from about 48,000 families and produced a report that took 12 variables into account, including income levels, sanitation, pollution and violence. Brasilia was named the best urban environment, while Rio Branco in the north-west border state of Acre came last.

But São Paulo need not despair: the city was only about one point behind Rio de Janeiro, and unlike 13 other state capitals, it had a positive rather than negative evaluation. Paulistanos rated their city negatively for violence, but may not have taken into account the most recent crime statistics. From July to September this year murders fell 26%, to 584, compared with the same period last year.

Football's dark side

In less than 24 hours on October 17th and 18th, three fans of different football clubs—Palmeiras, Corinthians and Ponte Preta—were killed in conflicts between rival supporters in São Paulo state. According to the police, one of the incidents, between Palmeiras and Corinthians fans, was pre-arranged via the internet.

The violence mars an already compromised football season. Last month two referees admitted fixing matches for a betting ring, which meant that 11 games in the current club championship have been rescheduled. All the replays, bar one, resulted in victories or draws for the teams that initially lost, angering some fans. The Paulista football authority is now considering introducing measures to lessen tensions at local derbies: these include banning particularly nasty fan clubs and barring visiting fans from wearing team jerseys.

Better late than never

Oscar Niemeyer, aged 97 and Brazil’s most famous architect, designed the buildings in São Paulo’s Ibirapuera Park for the city’s 400th anniversary celebration in 1954. In October, a year after São Paulo’s 450th anniversary, the last of Mr Niemeyer’s works opened: an 800-seat, cheese-grater-shaped auditorium with an entrance overhung by a giant red tongue. The building also has a removable back wall that lets an additional 15,000 people listen from the grass beyond.

The auditorium's construction was delayed for many years by a lack of funds, but with the help of Telecom Italia, work was able to start in 2003. Mr Niemeyer did not attend the opening himself because he says his original plans for the park need to be changed to incorporate the new building. He wants 40 metres of concrete-covered walkway demolished to open up the space between the auditorium and his white-domed exhibition pavilion, known as OCA. He is petitioning the Conselho Municipal do Patrimônio Histôrico de São Paulo to reverse its decision to retain the original design.

Catch if you can

November 2005

Alberto da Silva Guignard

Until December 23rd 2005

Alberto da Silva Guignard (1896-1962) is one of Brazil’s most popular modernist painters. He is best known for his imaginary landscapes of his native state, Minas Gerais, which depict the countryside in soft colours dotted with whimsical kites. This exhibition brings together 60 paintings, including several landscapes and some outstanding portraits. Three paintings of families on the wall behind the entrance are particularly good. Ignore the handful of insipid still lives.

The show includes photographs of the artist with his friends, including Amilcar de Castro, whose own works are on display across town (until November 12th). These two contemporaries exemplify the 20th century's art divide: while De Castro’s iron sculptures and bold, expressionist, black-and-white canvases are clearly rooted in the second half of the 20th century, Guignard’s work harks back to the impressionists.

Alberto da Silva Guignard, Pinakotheke Cultural, Rua Ministro Nelson Hungria 200, Morumbi. Tel: + 55 (11) 3758-5202.

Amilcar de Castro, Galeria Millan Antonio, Rua Fradique Courtinho 1360, Vila Madalena. Tel: + 55 (11) 3031-6007.

More from the Sao Paulo cultural calendar