Article: Church backs poor in drought; Brazil's leaders slow to respond.

PARAIBA, Brazil -- In this nation, the world's 10th largest economy and a net exporter of agricultural products and food, 9.5 million people are on the verge of starvation in the Northeast region because of what is perhaps the worst drought of the century.

Unlike the international attention devoted to the famines in North Korea and Sudan, news of this tragedy has only occasionally extended beyond the borders of Brazil. In the state of Paraiba, hungry farmers have sought refuge in the capital city of Joao Pessoa.

A stopping point for some, including Dona Benedita da Silva and her family, has been the city garbage dump. A month ago, Dona Benedita and ...

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