AP Interview: Brazil's Silva wants better US ties
Marina Silva, a front-running presidential candidate who grew up in the Amazon jungle and could become the first black to lead Brazil's government, said Wednesday that if elected she'll improve ties with the U.S. and strongly push for human rights in nations like Cuba.
She spoke exclusively to The Associated Press in her first interview with a foreign media outlet since being thrust into Brazil's presidential campaign after her Socialist Party's original candidate died in an Aug. 13 plane crash.
Silva, a former Amazon activist and environment minister who pushed policies that helped Brazil slash the rate at which it was destroying the jungle, has found herself in a dead-heat presidential race with President Dilma Rousseff. The incumbent represents the Workers Party, which Silva herself helped found three decades ago.
"Brazil has a great opportunity to become a global leader by leading by example," Silva said in talking about human rights and environmental protections. "Our values cannot be modified because of ideological or political reasons, or because of pure economic interest."
http://news.yahoo.com/ap-interview-brazils-silva-wants-better-us-ties-214753173.html
