HURZ
Does it need a third serious accident? Hopefully not!
A bit melodramatic don't you think? Congonhas had nothing to do with ATC.
However, I do agree with your view that ATC needs to improve here, and soon. It's not likely to though, because it isn't "sexy" enough and politicians don't see any benefit from improving the system.
Low investment, military control, poor salaries, poor training, very little incentive for people to continue with a career in ATC, the list is long. Brazil will only become ICAO 4 compliant in 2011, as per the plan presented to ICAO, so don't expect much before then.
Contrary to popular belief, most of the ATC equipment here is actually very modern, but.......there aren't enough radars to provide reliable 100% coverage, there are no back-up systems in the event of failures, power supplies are precarious in many places, and maintenance is frequently held up due to the lack of spare parts.
The sad fact is that the authorities are more interested in adding shopping centres to airport terminals than they are in improving the aviation infrastructure, and that's unlikely to change in the short term. Maybe the proposed audit next year will cause a rethink.
Boa sorte
Alemaobaiano