105 Photos from the event (Portuguese)

Translation of article on the forum (English)

Richard Stallman, who spoke at the forum:

"I love my country, but I am horrified at the politics of the government."

"The government of the U.S.A. is the puppet of corporations."

Note: To access these quotes, you have to go here and type in 'software livre' for the search term. You may have to register (Globo.com, Portuguese).

This was a Brazilian government sposored event, and was well-attended by lawmakers, national and international speakers. By making concrete plans to use Free Software withing the Brazilian government, they hope to encourage other businesses and individuals to switch to Free Software.

We include the rather inflammatory quotes from Stallman because we think it's important to note that these decisions are not being made just from the standpoint of cost savings. For some reason in the US press the impression is usually given that developing countries are embracing Free Software only because they can't afford proprietary solutions; this is simply not the case. While cost savings are of course important to these typically heavily indebted nations, a larger view must include security, accountability, and the feelings of being held hostage by foreign "Intellectual Property" laws and treaties, which are often tied to trade agreements.

Richard Stallman will be speaking at CompuExpo tomorrow right here in Costa Rica:

Jueves 28 de agosto

3:30 PM: Introduccion al software libre - Richard Stallman

(fundador del movimiento mundial Software Libre)

Willy Smith, reporting from Costa Rica