Military Justice
Senate committee approves Bill 44/16 that allows Armed Forces personnel involved in civilian deaths to be tried in military courts
Forças armadas já estão operando nas ruas e avenidas do Rio
Rio de Janeiro - Forças Armadas atuam na segurança pública na praia de Copacabana, zona sul da capital fluminense (Tomaz Silva/Agência Brasil)
The Foreign Relations Committee of the Senate approved this Thursday, September 14, the report of Senator Pedro Chaves on Bill 44/2016 that would allow members of the Armed Forces involved in the killing of civilians to be tried in military courts.
The text approved today even ignored the amendment proposed by Senator Chaves himself to remove the time limit included in the original bill, of December 2016. This maneuver prevents the text from returning to the Lower House, which would delay its passage through Congress. The Committee also approved a request for fast-track status, meaning it can be voted on the Senate floor next week. A request by Senator Vanessa Grazziotin for a public hearing on the matter was not even put to the vote by the Committee chairman, Senator Fernando Collor de Mello.
Approved in the Lower House of Congress in July 2016, the original bill drafted by Congressman Esperidião Amin alters the Military Criminal Code by establishing as the jurisdiction of military courts “willful crimes against life committed by Armed Forces personnel against civilians” when they occur in the “performance of duties established by the President of the Republic or by the Minister of Defense”. This includes the operations to guarantee law and order currently underway in Rio de Janeiro.
According to Marcos Fuchs, associate director of Conectas, the text approved today is unconstitutional and conflicts with international jurisprudence:
“The Military Justice System has its own legal jurisdiction that is based on laws established by the Military Criminal Code. Both deal with crimes related to the activities of the Armed Forces. Therefore, judging crimes committed against civilians in this jurisdiction is a disproportionate way of protecting the military and it gives Army personnel carte blanche to commit violations when on public security duty,” said Fuchs.
“Military troops are trained and armed to serve in exceptional situations of war. For this reason, the use of the Army as police in itself constitutes a deviation from their duties. The bill approved today conflicts with jurisprudence established by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights on the topic. A law like this should never be approved without the proper participation and analysis by society,” he concluded.
