Rousseff becomes first woman to lead Brazil

Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff speaks with Spain’s Prince Felipe during a reception after she was sworn in to office, in Planalto Palace in Brasilia January 1, 2011. (REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes)

BRASILIA, (Reuters) – Dilma Rousseff became Brazil’s  first female president on Saturday and promised to build on an  unprecedented run of economic success achieved by her popular  predecessor and mentor, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Thousands of admirers braved a driving rain and cheered as  Rousseff rode to her inauguration in a 1953 Rolls Royce flanked  by an all-female security detail. The former guerrilla, who  evolved over time into a pragmatic civil servant, vowed during  her inaugural speech to focus on tax reform and other steps she  said should help eradicate extreme poverty in the next decade.

“Many things have improved in Brazil, but this is just the  beginning of a new era,” said Rousseff, who briefly choked up  with emotion during the address to Congress.

“My promise is … to honor women, to protect the most  fragile, and to govern for all.”
Rousseff, 63, inherits an economy that still faces many  challenges — but is growing at a pace that would make most of  the rest of the world green with envy.    More than 20 million  Brazilians were lifted out of poverty during Lula’s eight years  in office, thanks largely to his social welfare policies and  stable economic management that made Brazil a darling among  Wall Street investors.

The coming decade also looks bright, with massive, newly  discovered offshore oil reserves due to be exploited and the  World Cup and Olympics to be hosted here.

Among the tasks Rousseff must address are an overvalued  currency that is hurting industry, rampant public spending that  is fueling inflation, and notorious bureaucracy that stifles  investment and discourages innovation.

Perhaps the biggest challenge will be living up to the  example set by Lula, a former metalworkers’ union leader who  leaves office with an approval rating of 87 percent and near  folk-hero status — especially among the poor.

Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff speaks with Spain's Prince Felipe during a reception after she was sworn in to office, in Planalto Palace in Brasilia January 1, 2011. (REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes)

“I’m here to thank Lula for all he’s done. If Dilma can do  half of that, I’ll be happy,” said Izabel Rosales Figuereido,  who traveled from the western state of Mato Grosso do Sul to  attend Rousseff’s inauguration.

Rousseff vowed on Saturday that “Lula will remain with us”  — signaling that he is likely to play an important advisory  role to her government.
Lula essentially hand-picked Rousseff, his former chief of  staff, to be his successor. The career civil servant had never  run for office before, and she remains somewhat of a mystery to  many Brazilians, but her promise to continue Lula’s policies  was enough to get her elected in October by a wide margin.

Rousseff now leads a country that, just four decades ago,  persecuted her as an enemy of the state.
The daughter of a Bulgarian immigrant, Rousseff was active  in the resistance to Brazil’s 1964-85 dictatorship. She was  jailed on subversion charges for three years and tortured by  her military captors. Several of her former cellmates were  present at her inauguration on Saturday.

After democracy returned, Rousseff held a series of  mid-level government jobs and acquired a reputation as a shrewd  technocrat who is unafraid to call out underlings for shoddy  work or incompetence, but often lacks a common touch when  dealing with voters.

More recently, she overcame lymphoma in 2009 and she  briefly wore a wig as she underwent chemotherapy. Her doctors  have given her a clean bill of health.

After the swearing-in, the twice-divorced Rousseff rode  through the streets of Brasilia in the Rolls Royce with the  roof down, and her daughter by her side. Nine of her 37  ministers will be women — a record for Brazil.

In her inaugural speech, Rousseff called for reform of  Brazil’s onerous and complex tax system. She also called  inflation a “plague,” vowing to keep prices under control, and  referred the new oil reserves as “our passport to the future.”

Lula attempted several tax reforms with only limited  success and pushing the changes through Rousseff’s 10-party  coalition in Congress will be easier said than done.