The process in question was called ADPF of the Favelas. The term refers to the type of action that violates fundamental precepts used to question disregards of basic rights guaranteed in the Constitution.
The trial was suspended in November after the court heard arguments from the Network of Communities and Movements against Violence and the Institute for the Defense of the Black Population, among other entities, including representatives from Rio.
During the session scheduled for this Wednesday, the STF will decide whether to definitively confirm or revoke the previous rulings adopted to restrict the Rio authorities’ actions and define the contours of public security policies in the territorial division.
Organizations demand that the court recognize the situation of serious human rights violations committed by security forces in the favelas in Rio and determine the adoption of initiatives to reduce such actions.
The Court ruled in 2020 to restrict police operations in poor neighborhoods in Rio de Janeiro during the Covid-19 pandemic. It also ordered the presentation of a plan with measures to reduce police lethality and control human rights violations by state security forces.
The rapporteur of the case is Minister Edson Fachin, who in 2022 ordered all police officers to wear body video cameras. In June 2023 he reiterated the decision and determined to establish a schedule to increase order in all police units, prioritizing those carrying out operations in favelas.
A report by the Brazilian Public Security Forum reveals that police lethality patterns in Rio “remain very high and above the national average.” In 2023, the rate was 5.4 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants in clashes with the police. The national average is 1.8 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants.
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