Fear, anxiety and
depression currently plague human rights defenders in Brazil. Not only because it is the country that kills the most
defenders in the world, according to data from Global Witness, but because this terrible
scenario could be worsened by the outcome of the upcoming presidential
election.
The leading
candidate, Jair Messias Bolsonaro, a retired army captain who praises the
military dictatorship, is openly pro-torture, and has professed an agenda for
the harassment of minorities and the devaluing of human rights.
On several
occasions, the candidate stated that the "mistake of the dictatorship was
to torture, not kill." while also maintaining an arsenal of homophobic,
misogynist and racist statements. Bolsonaro has already declared himself openly
homophobic and said he would prefer a "dead son to a homosexual son."
Unlike neighboring countries like Argentina, Uruguay and Chile, Brazil has never investigated, prosecuted or punished the barbaric crimes committed by the military regime.
As a lawyer for
CEJIL, I have litigated several cases of serious human rights violations before
the Inter-American system. In this role, I worked directly on some cases of
historical debt and crimes of the Brazilian military dictatorship. Brazil is
one of the few countries in the American continent where transitional justice
has not been initiated. Unlike neighboring countries like Argentina, Uruguay
and Chile, Brazil has never investigated, prosecuted or punished the barbaric
crimes committed by the military regime.
One of these
emblematic crimes was the execution of journalist Vladimir Herzog. On October 25th, 1975, the director of
journalism for TV Cultura was taken to testify at the Army's premises in the
city of São Paulo, due to his unarmed militancy in the Brazilian Communist
Party.
That very afternoon, Herzog was killed. The story released by the
authorities is that the journalist committed "suicide", forging the
infamous photo of him appearing to be hanging on his knees – a symbol of the
petulance of the regime.
It took more than 40
years for the Inter-American Court of Human Rights to finally recognize, in
July of 2018, that Herzog's death was due to torture. In this important
historical step, the Court recognized the crimes committed by State agents
during the Brazilian military dictatorship as crimes against humanity – an
international category of crimes considered to be of the greatest seriousness –
and therefore would not be subject to amnesty, or other legal constraints.
The candidate leading the presidential race not only praises the torturers but also says that the solution for Brazil would be "to kill 30,000"
However, these
democratic achievements are now under threat. This is because the candidate
leading the presidential race not only praises the torturers but also says that
the solution for Brazil would be "to kill 30,000". If elected,
Bolsonaro will be responsible for the appointment of three STF ministers and a
new Attorney General.
The assessment of members of the judiciary and MPF is
that these institutions will not be able to contain the advancement of
authoritarianism from the imposed framework. We can imagine the potential
damage that could be done in the coming years from having a majority in the
legislative houses.
I illustrate the current scenario to say that I am not afraid, but I do
dread what is to come. As a gay man, a lawyer, a human rights activist, who
directly acted to obtain justice in the crimes of the military dictatorship, I
am undoubtedly one of the direct targets. I fear for my life and for the lives
of my companions, because after January 1st, 2019, human rights defenders will
be targets in Brazil.
I try to remain calm
and sober, because the fight must continue, but I can not deceive myself. I
would like to be strong and say that I do not fear death, torture or
disappearance, but, in fact,
I am very afraid and feel as if this situation tests the limits of
my existence. Today, I fear that my destiny will be like that of Vladimir
Herzog. But I must continue working for the sake of the communities that I will
fight alongside with.