The result of the investigation into the murder of councilwoman Marielle Franco brings the opportunity to begin a turnaround in national public security policy

Per

Radio Pampa Editorial

| March 31, 2024

The result of the investigation into the murder of councilor Marielle Franco (PSOL-RJ) and her driver, Anderson Gomes, brings the opportunity to begin a turnaround in national public security policy and points the way to preventing the spread of organized crime about institutions.

The Federal Police (PF) arrested suspects not only of having Marielle killed, but also of sabotaging the investigations to protect the executioners and the criminal organization itself. In the tangle of facts surrounding the crime, there are still many threads to pull. In general terms, the PF report cites allegations that the Rio Civil Police received bribes to shelve the investigation of misdemeanor homicides. It is necessary to resume it, as well as clarify the deaths of suspects linked to those accused of plotting the murder — and “erased” along the way like file burning. It is also essential to understand how these defendants rose in the State structure and who opened the doors of power to them.

More than an example of how organized crime infiltrates the State, the Marielle case could be the seed of an exemplary investigation, capable of changing Brazilian public security policy. It is necessary to act against organized crime before institutional contamination grows. The federal government can no longer escape its responsibility to confront the mafias that terrorize the country. It cannot exclusively delegate to the states the mission of combating criminal organizations that act as multinational crime companies. They do not have the financial resources or means necessary to do so.

In the campaign, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva promised to separate the ministries of Public Security and Justice. In power, he did not separate. He should at least take the lead in a fundamental issue for Brazilians. The Federal Police, a corporation more immune to contamination than the state police, has demonstrated independence in investigating cases that the latter prefer to stifle. It should be the axis of a national task force to dismantle organized crime, involving other security forces, the Public Ministry, specialized judges, the Financial Activities Control Council (Coaf) and the Federal Revenue Service. As with any successful initiative capable of dismantling mafias embedded in the State around the world, investigating the money trail is essential to financially asphyxiate criminal organizations and prevent them from continuing to fuel barbarism.

Only with a central command, the action of a task force that integrates the various institutions and a robust security plan will it be possible to defeat organized crime. The alarming degree of institutional contamination revealed by the investigations into the Marielle case should serve as a warning to the authorities. The attempt to shield the President of the Republic from the stress associated with combating violence makes no sense, as Brasília has not been immune to the disaster. The topic is currently at the top of Brazilians’ concerns. The involvement of the police with organized crime is, in the words of Minister Gilmar Mendes, of the Federal Supreme Court, “extremely serious”. He defends the “refoundation of these institutions”. There is no time to lose. The time is now. Lethargy will only make everything worse.