Brazil
12.04.09
Reports
The Criminalisation Of Poverty - A Report on the Economic, Social and Cultural Root Causes of Torture and Other Forms of Violence in Brazil
In this report, the economic, social and cultural root causes of violence and, indeed, the impact of violence upon the possibility of enjoying economic, social and cultural rights, are examined from the specific perspective of “the criminalisation of poverty”, with a particular emphasis on Brazil’s urban areas.
The term “criminalisation of poverty” was frequently used both by representatives of civil society and by victims of violence in the course of interviews and meetings carried out during the preparatory mission. It refers to a clear and observable phenomenon that sees the poorest members of Brazilian society identified by state and quasi-state actors (the police, and in particular the military police, elements of the legal system, prison guards and militias) as criminal, or potentially criminal elements and on that basis being targeted for extortion, arbitrary arrest and detention, physical violence or, indeed, summary execution.