Brazil’s Justice Minister Claims Police Mutiny in Ceará State is Illegal

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Minister of Justice, Sérgio Moro, said on Saturday, February 29th, that the riot of state police (PM) officers in Ceará is illegal and needs to be stopped as soon as possible. “Police officers are dedicated professionals, they must be appreciated”.

“Obviously the strike is illegal, it should not be carried out and it has to be stopped as soon as possible,” he said at a press conference. During his speech, Moro refrained from criminalizing the police officers’ protest, but stressed the illegal nature of the strike.

“The federal government is concerned about the strike, which is illegal, of the state’s police. Clearly the police officers must be appreciated, obviously the police officers cannot be dealt with in any way as criminals”.

“What they want is to comply with the law and not break the law, but in fact this strike is illegal, it is banned by the Constitution,” Moro said. Moro took part in the 6th Meeting of the COSUD (Southern and Southeastern Integration Consortium), which takes place in Foz do Iguaçu, in western Paraná. The meeting included state governors such as João Doria, Eduardo Leite, Ratinho Junior and Romeu Zema.

When asked about Doria’s statements on the issue, Moro also said that the federal government is operating in Ceará to provide assistance to its population, but said that the responsibility for ending the crisis lies with the state government, headed by leftist Camilo Santana. “What we must do is work to solve the problems in Ceará while aware of our limitations”.

“There is state autonomy. It is the state of Ceará that is responsible for solving the issue, not the Federal Union. The Federal government is there assisting the population of Ceará to prevent this strike from resulting in greater harm to the population,” Moro says.

On Tuesday, February 25th, Doria complained about Moro and President Jair Bolsonaro’s performance in light of the crisis in public safety and the riots organized by state police in Ceará. Classifying the protest as “state police militia-like action,” Doria harshly criticized the police riots, calling the protest unconstitutional and anti-democratic.

“The federal government needs to have a better position in this area. I trust and like Minister Sérgio Moro, but he needs to be firm as a former judge and now as a minister too,” said Doria on Tuesday. Moro denied that there is a conflict between himself and governors and said he is against the political exploitation of the riot.

“There is no such conflict, and what I do not agree with is the political exploitation of what is happening in Ceará, both within and outside Ceará. The issue is very serious, and we have to handle it responsibly,” said the Minister of Justice.

The governor of Ceará, Camilo Santana, has refused to discuss amnesty for rioting PMs, one of the mutineers’ main demands.

On Thursday, February 27th, Judge Roberto Bulcão Coutinho of Fortaleza, ordered the pre-trial detention (for an indefinite period) of 43 MPs from the state suspected of the crime of desertion, provided in the Military Penal Code.

The decision states that the police officers refused to report for Operation Carnival 2020 on February 21st. The judge says the police officers’ actions have resulted in severe consequences for the population, such as an increase in the number of homicides, and that state police officers are banned from striking, as set out in the Constitution.

The judicial document states that the defense called for the dismissal of the case “due to medical certificates submitted” and that the potential delay “resulted from a change in the routine of the administration, which lacked specific intent”. According to the defense, the incident would not constitute a dereliction of duty.