Brazil's Democratic Movement Party, the biggest in the nation's Senate, agreed to withdraw from President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's government and ask its two ministers to resign.

Yesterday's votes require government officials who are members of the party to quit, including Social Security Minister Amir Lando and Communications Minister Eunicio Oliveira, a party spokesman said.

A smaller party, the Popular Socialist Party, also voted to leave Lula's coalition and become independent, the party said in an e-mailed statement.

“This doesn't translate into a political crisis, but surely it will increase political noise and delay the passage of Lula's economic legislation,” Amaury de Souza, a political analyst with MCM Consultores, said by phone from Sao Paulo. “The government is finding it increasingly hard to manage its coalition.”

Together, the two parties have 24 senators and 99 lower- house deputies. The lower house has 513 seats and the Senate has 81 seats. Lula counts on support from his coalition partners to pass bills including legislation on taxes, bankruptcies and the budget.

The Democratic Movement Party, known as PMDB, will continue to back government-sponsored legislation, said party president Michel Temer, according to Agencia Brasil, the government news agency. Nineteen of the party's 22 senators signed a statement to this effect on Dec. 10.

Minister of National Integration Ciro Gomes, a member of the Popular Socialist Party and a former presidential candidate, offered his resignation to Lula and will meet party officials this week to discuss his future, Estado reported.

(From Bloomberg, Dezembro 13, 2004)

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