- Between January and June 2022, all Brazilian states recorded cases of political violence. The total, until June, is 214 cases.
- Crimes such as threats, attacks, homicides and kidnappings of political leaders and family members are considered. The victims are politicians in office, pre-candidates, ex-politicians, ex-candidates and public administration employees.
From January 2019, the first month of the Bolsonaro government, until June this year, there was a 335% increase in cases of political violence in Brazil. The data was collected by UniRio's Political and Electoral Violence Observatory (OVPE).
ADVERTISING
While in the first half of 2019 the total number of cases was 47, the same period in 2022 recorded 214 episodes. The increase in cases of violence between the last quarter of 2021 and the first three months of 2022 it was more than 48%.
- Political violence increases concern in the election; know more (Stay)
- From a fight at a rally to a murder, political violence is advancing in the country three weeks before the elections (The globe)
Election periods
During electoral periods, as the contest at the polls approaches, the number of political violence tends to increase. But the escalation of political violence during the electoral period in recent years exceeds the trend and appears to be more intense.
When comparing cases from the first half of 2022 with records from the same period of the last election year in Brazil, in 2020, there was an increase of 23%. Crimes went from 174 to 214. In the first quarter of this year alone, the increase compared to 2020 was 28%. OVPE has carried out surveys every three months since 2019.
(See the table for other comparisons between 2020 and 2022)
Violent attacks against political actors in Brazil increase the concern of civil society, security forces, scholars and national authorities and International.
New Brazilian scenario
Political violence in the country is growing rapidly and also gains new features, when compared with other periods. “In the case of 2022, what we are seeing is that there is radicalization, but what we observe now is that these attacks and threats are mediated by weapons”, analyzes Pablo Almada, social scientist and researcher at the Center for Violence Studies at the University of São Paulo (NEV/USP).
Almada, who is a specialist in Democracy in the 21st Century, also remembers that, last weekend, Ciro Gomes, from PDT, and Guilherme Boulos, from PSOL, were threatened by supporters of the opposing campaign. And all these episodes are configured as political violence. Listen to the researcher’s assessment of these cases below:
The scholar listed some factors in Brazil's political past, referring to the context in which the shadow of political violence was gaining strength. In 2014, Dilma Rousseff his victory was contested by his rival Aetius Neves, from the PSDB. His impeachment took place in 2016. The arrest of former president Lula in 2018, the same year as Jair Bolsonaro's election, and what followed tempered the political and electoral competition with more and more “pepper”.
In 2018, the press reported the violent death of Marielle Franco, former councilor for Rio de Janeiro who denounced the actions of militias in Rio de Janeiro communities. Pablo comments that that year “began with the murder of Marielle Franco, in March, and then, in October, there was the death of capoeirista Moa do Katende. Both were seen as crimes of political violence. They symbolize the beginning of a tense conflict provoked by opposing political divisions.” Listen:
Weapons and the political scenario
The greater presence of firearms among citizens has impacted both Brazilian politics and the scenario of politically motivated violence. According to Felipe Angeli, Advocacy Manager at Instituto Sou da Paz, “The perpetrators of attacks are no longer political colonels (….) someone who exercises local dominance. Today we have violence committed by “good citizens”, in the sense of ordinary citizens. It's the guy who passes by a birthday party and decides to shoot the birthday boy". (The globe)
“Armed people will never be enslaved”
The maxim of current president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) illustrates how his government views the issue of civilian weapons. Today, about 1.300 weapons are purchased per day by Brazilians, according to the Sou da Paz Institute.
ADVERTISING
Under his mandate, they jumped from 117 thousand to more than 673 thousand CAC records (Collector, Sport Shooter and Hunter). The Brazilian Public Security Forum estimates that the total number of weapons in private hands is 4,4 million.
Through around 17 decrees, 19 ordinances, two bills, two resolutions and three normative acts, Bolsonaro made the carrying of weapons more flexible and has expanded the population's access to weapons and ammunition since taking office in 2019. Since his pre-campaign for the 2018 elections, the current president has had facilitating access to weapons for civilians as one of his main banners. (Jota)
What does 'political violence' mean?
The term is defined as “any type of aggression that aims to interfere in the direct action of political leaders” by the Political and Electoral Violence Observatory of the Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro. ((CNN)
ADVERTISING
Gender political violence
According to the legislation that made this practice a crime in 2021, political violence can be defined as the act of “harassing, embarrassing, humiliating, persecuting or threatening, by any means, a candidate for elective office or holder of an elective mandate, using contempt or discrimination against the condition of women or their color, race or ethnicity, with the purpose of preventing or hindering their electoral campaign or the performance of their elective mandate”.
Curto Curatorship
- Pistol or Maria da Penha Law: 82% of women are against greater access to weapons as Bolsonaro wants (BBC)
- Monitoring reveals an increase in topics related to political violence on GETTR, Facebook and Twitter (Core)
- Against attacks, committee creates guide to curb and report political violence (UOL)
- Body of councilor murdered with a point-blank shot is laid to rest at Conchas City Hall (G1)
- Councilor is shot dead after the Chamber session in the interior of SP (Folha de S.Paulo)
- Political violence prevents more black people from participating in electoral disputes, study finds (Folha de S.Paulo)
- Four circles of security and candidate dribbling: Lula in times of political violence (Intercept)
- PF anticipates and expands Lula’s security for the elections (Folha de S.Paulo)
Top photo: Wikicommons
