E/CN.4/1996/72/Add.1 page 3 INTRODUCTION A. Purpose of the mission 1. In accordance with the mandate laid down in Commission on Human Rights resolutions 1993/20 and 1995/12 and by agreement with the Brazilian Government, the Special Rapporteur visited Brazil from 6 to 17 June 1995. The purpose of the mission was to obtain reliable information on the relations between the various ethnic and racial components of Brazil. Since Brazil is perceived by the international community as a positive example of ethnic and racial integration, that country was chosen primarily on the basis of the Special Rapporteur’s comprehensive approach to the discharge of his mandate as he had indicated in his previous reports to the Commission and the General Assembly 1/ namely that contemporary forms and manifestations of racism and racial discrimination should be sought in the developed countries as well as in the developing countries. 2. On the face of it, this mission could have become a mere exercise in elucidating a situation that appears to be quite familiar and might have been presented as a reference model for countries facing the problem of racism and racial discrimination and seeking to manage their pluralism or cultural mixing. On the other hand, by immersing himself in the Brazilian social context, albeit temporarily, perhaps the Special Rapporteur could gain different insights or even a more objective understanding of the issue of racism and racial discrimination as it may arise in Brazil. With his experience in the study of Afro-Brazilian and Amerindian cultures (as a former programme specialist and later Director of the UNESCO Division for the study of Cultures, perhaps he could endeavour to bring a fresh approach to the understanding of a complex sociological context. Such complexity is itself the product of a specific economic, sociocultural and political history. This mission was therefore undertaken in a spirit of openness and sympathetic curiosity, against the background of contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. B. Chronology of the mission 3. The Rapporteur arrived in Brasilia on 6 June 1995 and travelled successively to Belem (State of Pará), Salvador (State of Bahia), São Paulo (State of São Paulo) and Rio de Janeiro (State of Rio de Janeiro). 4. In Brasilia, the capital of Brazil and seat of the Government and federal institutions, the Special Rapporteur had the honour to speak with Mr. Luiz Felipe Lampreia, Minister for Foreign Affairs; Mr. Nelson Jobim, Minister of Justice; and Mr. José Sarney, former President of the Republic, President of the Senate. He also met Mr. Cristovam Buarque, Governor of the Federal District of Brasilia; Mr. Edson Machado, Adviser to the Minister of Education; Mr. Antonio Augusto Anastasia, Executive Secretary of the Ministry of Labour; Mr. José Carlos Seixas, Executive Secretary of the Ministry of