Cleaning up

ORGANISED crime takes several forms in Brazil. One is politics—a lucrative trade. Of the 513 members of the lower house of Congress, 147 face criminal charges in the supreme court or are under investigation, and the same goes for 21 of the 81 senators, according to Congresso em Foco, a website that acts as a watchdog. Some—nobody knows quite how many—have already been convicted in lower courts. Most of the crimes involve either violating campaign-finance laws or stealing public money.

Hitherto the politicians had little to worry about. Although the law was changed to limit parliamentary immunity for corruption, Brazilian justice is patient. Politicians have the right to be tried by the supreme court, but many cases lapse before they are heard. When the supreme court recently convicted two politicians for corruption, it was the first successful prosecution since democracy was restored in 1985. Since legislators who are impeached lose their right to run for office, many of those in serious trouble simply resign pre-emptively. They then stand in the next election and get straight back to business.