This Friday, the Federal Supreme Court (STF) formed a majority (13) to declare the production and distribution of dossiers of privacy and political choice of servers identified with the “anti-fascist movement” unconstitutional. The existence of the documents was revealed by UOL in 2020.
The trial is taking place in a virtual plenary session of the court, and so far eight ministers have already voted against the documents – so far only Nunez Marquez disagrees with his colleagues. The voice of Gilmar Mendes is still missing. In August 2020, the Supreme Court suspended the preparation of the dossier by 9 votes to 1, considering that there had been a deviation from the goal. Ministers are now debating its legitimacy.
In his vote, Núñez Márquez said he did not see violations, as the government’s reports were aimed at “preventing actions that could cause disorder and physical aggression against people, as well as the possible looting of public and private property.”
report UOL published in July 2020 revealed that the Ministry of Justice and Public Security had prepared a dossier with the names and social media addresses of teachers and civil servants who identified themselves as “anti-fascists”. In some cases, these people were even photographed.
Sustainability Network filed a lawsuit with the STF against the dossier and accused Bolsonaro’s government of encouraging the “state apparatus” to carry out “political and ideological persecution”.
A total of 579 university professors and civil servants were to be included in the dossier.
In the trial, which began last Friday and will run until 11:59 pm today, Carmen Lucia was the first to vote and the only one besides Nunes Marquez until the moment she submitted the written vote. The rest of the ministers simply followed his position without composing their own vote.
Carmen opposed the production of the dossier and stated that there was no “objective or direct objection” from the Ministry of Justice in connection with the news about the preparation of documents.
Therefore, intelligence activities must be carried out with respect for the democratic regime, in which the persecution of opponents and the political apparatus of the state is not allowed. In fact, the history of abuse reported against the intelligence service highlights the need for effective monitoring of these activities.”
Carmen Lucia, Minister of the STF
The minister said that “freedom of political expression” must be ensured in order to guarantee a democratic regime. “It is in political debates that citizenship manifests itself with the strength of its essence,” he said.
The trial could still be suspended if Minister Gilmar Mendez asks for an opinion (more time for analysis) or allocates a maneuver that moves the discussion to face-to-face sessions of the Supreme Court.
Carmen Lucia was accompanied by the following ministers: Ricardo Lewandowski, Alexandre de Moraes, Diaz Toffoli, Edson Fachin, Rosa Weber, Roberto Barroso and STF President Luis Fuchs.
One of the expected votes was that of Minister André Mendonza, Bolsonaro’s candidate for the court, but he declared himself a suspect and did not participate in the trial.
Mendonsa was Minister of Justice and Public Security at the time the dossier was discovered. report UOL showed that this activity was carried out by Seopi (Secretariat of Integrated Operations), at that time reporting to the then Minister of Justice.
Ministers saw a deviation from the goal
At the meeting that suspended the production of the dossier, the ministers of the Supreme Court said that the activity was characterized by “evasion of purpose”. The score was 9 votes to 1, differing only with Minister Marco Aurelio Mello.
“The very possibility of the existence of the dossier represents a risk to which we never intend to be exposed again, fully accompanying the speaker in granting the request for the immediate cessation of the production and dissemination of information and state intelligence produced in relation to members of the anti-fascist movement and the university professors mentioned. , for his clear deviance from the goal,” Minister Edson Fachin confirmed.
Minister Luis Roberto Barroso compared the production of the dossier to the work of the secret services during the military dictatorship (1964-1985). For the minister, polls of this kind are only justified if there are strong grounds to believe that the group is plotting against the state or institutions, which was not the case.
“The Brazilian past denounces the misuse of the power structures. This type of monitoring to find out what potential adversaries are doing is completely incompatible with democracy,” Barroso said.
