Public hearing in National Human Rights Council to debate 15 years of the Crimes of May
An event this Tuesday, August 17, will bring together activists, relatives of victims and members of public institutions to discuss the massacre that occurred in May 2006
Débora Maria da Silva, fundadora do Mães de Maio.
The CNDH (National Human Rights Council), the organization Justiça Global and the Mothers of May Movement will stage this Tuesday, August 17, at 3 pm, a public hearing called “15 years of the Crimes of May: Impunity and the challenges of tackling racism”. Watch the event live at this link.
According to the Council, the purpose is to bring together civil society organizations and public authorities to debate the impunity and racism involved in the crimes that occurred in May 2006.
The event will be attended by the relatives of the victims, human rights activists, researchers and members of public bodies. Among the institutions and organizations that have confirmed their presence are: the Federal Prosecutor’s Office, the Public Defender’s Office, the Mothers of May Movement, Conectas, Rede Contra a Violência (Network Against Violence) and the Forensic Archeology and Anthropology Center of the Federal University of São Paulo (Caaf/Unifesp).
Read more:
- Crimes of May: IACHR accepts another complaint against the Brazilian State
- Crimes of May: impunity marks 15-year remembrance of one of São Paulo’s biggest massacres
Fifteen years ago, while the country was celebrating Mother’s Day, the urban outskirts of São Paulo experienced a wave of terror and unprecedented violence. More than 500 people, the majority young and black, were murdered between 12-21 May 2006, in the episode that has become known as the Crimes of May. Most of the victims were killed at close range by death squads – hooded, heavily armed men in vehicles without license plates. To date, the public institutions – responsible for investigating and prosecuting the people involved in the episode – have not provided any answers.
