Rio de Janeiro

Ten former ministers of Science, Technology, and Innovation have come together to show they oppose Jair Bolsonaro's government measures in the area.

"We live today the greatest of trials in our history," said a manifesto signed by them on Monday (1st).

The document, called "Brazilian Science on Alert," brought together portfolio managers in the last 30 years, most of them in PT governments, and was launched at the Engineering Institute (Coppe) of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro ( UFRJ).

Ex-Ministers of Science: Marco Antonio Raupp, Aloízio Mercadante, Roberto Amaral, Clélio Campolina and Celso Pansera - Júlia Barbon/Folhapress

"The drastic budget cuts could lead to an unparalleled setback in the history of Brazilian science, an essential and critical area for economic and social development as well as national sovereignty," the two-page text begins.

They point to examples of the "maturity of national science achieved in recent years": technologies in deepwater oil exploration, research in agriculture, construction of a third generation particle accelerator and the production of airplanes, among others.

They concluded by saying that one can not "allow the creation of conditions that stimulate the avoidance of our best brains" nor "the absence of representatives of the scientific community in committees and government councils."

This was the fourth time that incumbent ministries from past administrations joined hands in an unprecedented wave of protests against Bolsonaro government measures. Ex-ministers from three other bureaus have already issued manifestos and did public acts.

Translated by Kiratiana Freelon

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