Lula
da Silva Ends 2009 With A Military Crisis
Over Reviewing The Past
BRASILIA - Brazilian president Lula da Silva
praised as one of the most influential
leaders of the world ends 2009 with a
serious political crisis: the Minister of
Defence and the commanders on the three
services have threatened to resign over the
creation of a “truth commission” to
investigate human rights abuses during the
military dictatorship that extended from
1964 to 1985.
According to the leading dailies O Globo and
O Estado de Sao Paulo the resignations were
presented on December 22nd a day after Lula
da Silva unveiled the “truth commission”
bill but were rejected. The Brazilian leader
promised Jobim, --a distinguished jurist--,
to review the text before sending it to
Congressional debate.
The creation of National Commission on the
Truth is part of Brazil’s Human Rights
National Program launched by Lula da Silva
to help identify those responsible for the
alleged torturing of 20.000 people and the
killing of 400 political opponents during
the 19 year military dictatorship.
The text of the bill was drafted by Human
Rights minister Paulo Vannuchi who said the
purpose was “to rescue information of all
that happened during the long period of
dictatorial repression in recent Brazilian
history”.
Vannuchi said there is a possibility of
taking to court those responsible for human
rights abuses if the Supreme Federal
Tribunal accepts the Lula da Silva
administration argument that those
responsible for this kind of crimes are not
protected under the Amnesty law dating back
to 1979, approved under the last president
of the military regime, General Joao
Figueiredo.
For this reason the proposal includes a
reference to the possibility of annulling
“legislation remnant from the 1964/1985
period which is contrary to human rights
guarantees”.
But in spite of long extenuating and
sometimes tense negotiations with the
military, the final text triggered
indignation and was catalogued as
“revengeful” since it did not include in the
investigations members of the left wing
armed groups that also committed human
rights abuses against members of the regime.
“If they want to see generals and colonels
in the dock, let’s also include Dilma (Rousseff)
and Franklin Martins” said a retired general
quoted by O Estado de Sao Paulo. Martins is
head of the presidential press office and Ms
Rousseff cabinet chief and Lula da Silva’s
chosen hopeful to succeed him as
presidential candidate for October’s
election. Both of them belonged to left wing
armed groups under the military
dictatorship.
According to O Estado de Sao Paulo, on not
accepting the resignations of Minister Jobim
and the commanders of the Army, Navy and Air
Force, Lula da Silva promised a “political”
solution to the dispute and asked the
Defence minister to ensure the military that
his administration would not be the
“spokesperson of measures that revoke the
Amnesty Law of 1979”.
Apparently Lula da Silva’s promise helped to
cool tempers but did not dissipate the
disappointment among the top brass. “That’s
how Lula acts: he pushes the issue and kicks
the crisis forward but we never manage to be
freed from this menacing atmosphere”, said a
brigadier quoted by the press.
The presidential office, Planalto did not
comment the reports of a possible military
crisis but minister Vannuchi admitted
“discrepancies” with his Defence peer.
However he said he ignored about the
resignations requests.
“I was with President Lula da Silva on
December 23rd and he mentioned no word about
the issue”, said Vannuchi who added that
there’s “no atmosphere” for a collective
resignation of the Armed Forces commanders:
“It like talking about thunder in a clear
sunny day; it sounds as a storm in a glass
of water”.
Groups representing those killed or missing
are also dissatisfied and concerned the
commission may be used to draw a line under
the past rather than open the way for trials
of former soldiers, as have occurred in
neighbouring Argentina, Uruguay and Chile.
They noted that a draft version of the
proposal had called the new body, which has
to be approved by the Brazilian Congress, a
Truth and Reconciliation Commission rather
than a Truth and Justice Commission.
Brazil has never convicted anyone for
participating in dictatorship-era murders
and torture and has refused to make public
the military's archives from the period.
The victims' groups insist the truth
commission must have the power to
investigate crimes, including the hiding or
destroying of archives, to recommend
criminal cases against suspects, and to send
documents to courts. |
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