South Africa is not Brazil

With the Football World Cup South Africa aims to present itself to the world as a modern nation on par with Brazil. According to the leftist daily Público it has little hope of achieving this: "Clint Eastwood's film Invictus showed the general public how Nelson Mandela made the rugby world championship in 1995 the symbol of a new democratic, multiethnic and reconciled South Africa. Now the World Cup presents another golden opportunity for President Jacob Zuma. Not to demonstrate that the model still works but to promote his country as a superpower that aspires to assume a similar role to Lula's Brazil. It's doubtful that he will succeed. Firstly because even though it generates 40 percent of Sub-Saharan Africa's GDP, has fabulous mineral reserves and is a member of the G20, South Africa is no Brazil. … And Zuma is no Lula, and certainly no Mandela."

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