Faced with human rights abuses in Brazil and the failure of institutions to respond, the last three years have been marked by an explosion of international appeals against the Brazilian government. Action at the UN, international courts, or the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights proliferated, on behalf of civil society, in the hope that outside pressure could place a restraint on national authorities and fill the vacuum left by domestic justice.
At a recent meeting between human rights organizations and the Brazilian government, one of the diplomats in charge of the department dealing with these issues acknowledged that the increase in cases handled in the country is significant.
João Lucas Quental, director of the Itamaraty Department of Human Rights and Social Issues, highlighted that there are more than 220 cases being processed at different stages of the Human Rights Commission of the Americas. Today, Brazil is one of the three countries most affected by the allegations in a region of serious human rights abusers such as Venezuela, Nicaragua and others.
While explaining the situation to other attendees at the meeting, the diplomat acknowledged that the increase in cases was “quite reasonable”. However, the Commission, which has received “budget boosts” in recent months, justified that this enlargement is widespread.
The increase in cases is also being seen in the Inter-American Court, which is currently hearing ten cases against Brazil. Itamaraty acknowledges that there has been an “increase in the speed” of processes in this process as well.
The recognition came during a meeting Wednesday between government agencies and ministries and the National Human Rights Council. The event was the 3rd Monitoring Meeting on Human Rights of Brazilian Foreign Policy.
The meeting was attended by non-governmental organizations that are part of the University’s Permanent Monitoring and Action Commission on the Implementation of International Human Rights Obligations. The International Advisory Board of the Ministry of Women, Family and Human Rights and the Human Rights Unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs participated on behalf of the government.
Wanted Itamaraty did not respond to reporter questions about the increase in lawsuits and Commission searches. However, the UOL found that the cases concerned serious human rights violations, including domestic issues, police brutality, attacks on journalists and the removal of torture monitoring systems.
International pressure does not only come from regional institutions. At the UN, 47 letters were sent by agency rapporteurs to the Brazilian government requesting responses regarding human rights violations. The themes once again span a range of sectors and address the president’s attitudes towards the 1964 coup, the indigenous problem, police brutality, healthcare and pesticides.
The number of complaints filed against Brazil, with 20 complaints in three and a half years, is much higher than the demands of rapporteurs for countries like France. For the United Kingdom, there were 32 complaints during the same period.
“The rise in cases involving international bodies and mechanisms by the Brazilian State in recent years shows not only how much the current government’s set of policies and administrative actions violate minimum standards for the protection of human rights,” explains Daniel Campos de Carvalho, Federal University of São Paulo Professor of International Law in the Law course at (Unifesp).
According to him, this “also illustrates the movement of increasing adoption by civil society and victims of violations of international legal norms and institutions in exploring and promoting access to justice beyond national examples”.
“Furthermore, it further deepens Brazil’s recent isolation at the international level, as something resulting from the current government’s rupture with the historical premises of Brazilian foreign policy,” the academic adds.
But the big news in recent years is the decision of national organizations to also apply to the International Criminal Court in their complaints against Jair Bolsonaro. There are at least five public cases under review by the court attorney to decide on a possible preliminary investigation.
The People’s Permanent Court, which tried Bolsonaro for crimes against humanity, attacks against minorities and threats to democracy during the covid-19 outbreak, is expected to make a decision in the coming weeks. The international body created in the 1970s does not have the weight of the International Criminal Court and does not have the capacity to bring cases against a state or head of government. But an eventual conviction is seen by civil society groups, former ministers and lawyers as an important seal to pressure Planalto Palace and expose Bolsonaro to the world.
source: Noticias
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