Inequality driving violence
In the last 2 decades the violence in Brazil has increased exponentially. The social tension created by the enormous economical gap between the poorest and most vulnerable portion of the population and the upper class has reached its boiling point causing a sinister development. According to the Brazilian law, children are protected until they are 18 years-old and any crimes committed before this age does not bring any serious consequences to the children or teenagers. Exploring loops in the law, adults employ under-age teenagers to commite violent crimes knowing that they cannot be touched by the Justice.
Nowadays in Brazil the society is hostage of criminals that are running free on the streets meanwhile the population ironically lives in fear behind bars and high walls. It is almost common place to read in the news about a violent crime that has been committed by an under-age member of a group of criminals. The story is always the same, apart from minor changes on the characters names. Do not be mistaken, this is not mere coincidence, adults are responsible for the planning and execution of robberies, drug running, rapes and murders but instead of taking responsibility for the crimes the perpetrators pass on the blame to a minor in his gang, who is protected by the Law.
In recent months all these violent crimes have sparked a fierce debate about what should be the age for a youngster to reach majority and be considered responsible for his/her acts. The proposed age is 16 years-old and this discussion has split the brazilian society in 2 main groups. On one side you have the Human Rights supporters that believe that lowering the age will leave the children and teenagers even more vulnerable, while in the other side lies a frightened brazilian society shook by atrocities committed and brutal crimes. Both sides have strong arguments. The Brazilian Human Rights movement has been successfully campaigning since the brazilian redemocratization in the 80s against abuses perpetrated by the Government agents during the military dictatorship in Brazil, but some can argue that they also inadvertently protected serious criminals, that portrayed themselves as victims, by given them the benefit of the doubt.
That is exactly the point where these 2 groups clash. The scared brazilian society accuses the Human Rights supporters of defending robbers, rapists, thieves and murderers but never their victims. Meanwhile the other group throws a blanket of fascism to anyone who cries for laws with more teeth and tough police enforcement on the streets.
While the controversy continues to grow, congressmen are pushed by the society to take sides. The Congress in Brasilia has established the Constitution Commission for Justice and Citizenship (CCJ in Portuguese) to overlook this delicate subject. There are three main proposes to amend the constitution that would reduce the age of majority to 16 years old in cases of torture, terrorism, drug running, kidnapping, heinous crimes and if the minor delinquent have an extensive criminal records such as physical assaults or robbery.
The Senator Ricardo Ferraco, responsible for the CCJ, has stated in recent interview to the press that “the brazilian society cannot be hostage of minor delinquents that, under law protection, commit heinous crimes”, reflecting the opinion of majority of the brazilian society on the matter.
However specialists in public security disagree with the proposition arguing that this only serves to show that the Brazilian Government failed in providing protection to its children and teenagers. Also, that the current state of the overcrowded prisons (more than half a million inmates and still with a deficit of 250 thousand places) would only contribute to transform small time outlaws into professional criminals. This is a strong argument since Brazil has one of the highests reoffending rates in the world.
The former Brazilian Supreme Court, Antonio Cezar Peluso, has stated that 7 in each 10 former inmates will end up in prison again. This number reflects the current situation of the Brazilian Penitentiary system where, according to the Judge Luciano Losekann from the Department for Monitoring and Fiscalization of Penitentiaries, only 14% of the inmates are currently working and just 8% are studying from inside the prisons. “Because they don’t have any qualification, the first obstacle to be overcome is to provide training to the inmates, while in prison, to help them to find a job that will enable them a smooth reintegration to the society”, explains Judge Losekann in recent interview to the legal magazine Ultima Instancia.
This poor level of reintegration of the inmates to the society in conjunction with the overcrowded prisons does not seems to be a suitable place to rehabilitate teenagers under any circumstances. Not to mention that reducing the majority age will add even more people to the already inflated prison system that will add up to the reoffending statistics creating the never ending vicious cycle of inequality and criminality.
A profound and systematic reform in the brazilian justice (creating alternative sentences for minor offences), educational (providing training and qualification to enable former inmates to secure jobs once released and also prevent the youth to be pushed to the crime path), prisional (less overcrowded, better equipped and trained staff) will, in time, contribute to reduce the criminality rates in Brazil. In light of the recent anti-government protests, President Dilma Rousseff has promised a number of reforms including using the funds derived from the oil exploration royalties to be invested in the improvement of the educational system. If the intention becomes reality, that would be the first step in the long path to address the inequality that drives children and teenagers in Brazil into the criminal world.
