A DOSSIER

APRIL 1970
 WE CANNOT REMAIN SILENT
We cannot remain s il e n t in the face of the overwhelming evidence of the fla g ra n t denial of human
rights and d ig n ity coming to us from B r a z il . This dossier is but a fra c tio n of that evidence. S ig n i­
f i c a n t l y , several documents were w ritte n by B razilian s and smuggled out of B ra zil at great risk to those
involved. They accepted the possible penalties in order to inform the people of the world of the fact
that te r ro r and to rtu re are used in t h e ir country as instruments of government.

We cannot remain s il e n t . To do so would make us accomplices of those who are the authors and
perpetrators of th is repression. We c a ll upon the readers of this dossier to raise t h e ir voices in pro­
test wi th us.

RALPH DAVID ABERNATHY RICHARD MORSE

Pres i dent Professor of History
Southern C hristian Leadership Conference Yale University
DORY ASHTON JAMES H. ROBINSON
Author Di rector
JOHN BENNETT Crossroads A fric a
President BENJAMIN S. ROSENTHAL
Union Theological Seminary U.S. Congressman, New York City
STERLING W. BROWN Interamerican A ffa ir s Sub-committee of
Pres ident the House Foreign A ffa irs Committee
National Conference on Christians and Jews ANDRÉ SCHIFFRIN
LOUIS M. COLONNESE Managing Oirector
D ire c to r, Division for Latin America Pantheon Books
United States Catholic Conference MARGARET SHANNON
THOMAS CORNELL Executive D ire c to r , Church Women United
National Secretary National Council of Churches
Catholic Peace Fellowship RICHARD SHAULL
ALLEN D'ARCANGELO Professor of Ecumenics, Princeton Seminary
Art i st President, World Student Christian Federation
DOROTHY DAY THOMAS E. SKIDMORE
The Catholic Worker Professor of Latin American History
RALPH DELLA CAVA University of Wisconsin
Assistant Professor of History JOHN COVENTRY SMITH
Queens College, C ity Univ. N.Y. General Secretary
JOSEPH P. FITZPATRICK Commission on Ecumenical Mission 6- Relations
Professor of Sociology United Presbyterian Church
Fordham University STANLEY J. STEIN
DANA S. GREEN Professor of Latin American History
D ire c to r, Latin America Department Princeton University
National Council of Churches I . F. STONE
HANS HAACKE Ed i tor
Art ist I . F. Stone Weekly
HERSCHEL HALBERT DAVID M. STOWE
Executive D ire c to r, International Executive Vice President-Elect
League fo r the Rights of Man United Church Board for World M in is trie s
RICHARD HOWARD BRADY TYSON
Poet and C r i t i c Associate Professor, Latin American Studies
IRENE JONES American U niv e rs ity , Washington, D.C.
Assistant General Secretary CHARLES WAGLEY
American Baptist Foreign Mission Society Boaz Professor of Anthropology
TRACEY K. JONES, JR. Columbia University
General Secretary LLOYD C. WICKE
Board of Missions Bishop
United Methodist Church United Methodist Church
STANLEY KUNITZ ANDREW YOUNG
P u litz e r Prize Winning Poet Executive Vice-President
JOHN A. MACKAY Southern Christian Leadership Conference
President Emeritus ADJA YUNKERS
Princeton Seminary A rtist

(INSTITUTIONAL AFFILIATION IS INDICATED SOLELY FOR THE PURPOSE OF IDENTIFICATION)

 1

ABOUT THIS DOSSIER

In th is dossier, the reader w i l l fin d a v a rie ty of documents th at are f a i t h f u l l y and accurately
reproduced, and bear upon the current c r i s i s in B r a z il . There a r e , f o r example, laws, decrees and
summary " i n s t i t u t i o n a l acts" upon which the present m i l i t a r y regime has legitimated i t s r i g h t to v i r t u a l l y
unlim ited power. There are also personal and eye-witness accounts about t o r t u r e , t e r r o r and repression,
c l e a r l y among the consequences of th a t unlimited m i l i t a r y power. A ll the documents, however, are authen­
t i c and have been rendered in to r e l i a b l e English tr a n s la tio n s .

Almost a l l the " le g a l" documents contained herein o r i g i n a l l y appeared in the B r a z il ia n press.
P recisely because the press has been subjected for several years to self-censorship and, of l a t e , to
varying degrees of d ir e c t government c o n tro l, the texts from which the present tra n s la tio n s are drawn
must be considered " o f f i c i a l " .

The personal and eye-witness accounts of to r t u r e , t e r r o r and repression have several o rig in s :
public statements to the B r a z il ia n and world press by prominent and courageous B ra z ilia n leaders such as
Dorn Helder Camara, Archbishop of Recife and Olinda; d e ta ile d reports s e c re tly w r itt e n and remitted abroad
by unrenowned but equally courageous B ra z ilia n c i t i z e n s , often times the very victims of to r t u r e .

But, the reader may u n h e s ita n tly endow even the l a t t e r accounts of to rtu re with absolute c r e d i b i l i t y .
In f a c t , a l 1 but one of those accounts tr anslated here, whether of public or clandestine o r i g i n ,
appeared o r i g i n a l l y in jo u r n a ls , magazines and other publications of utmost r e l i a b i l i t y and r e s p o n s i b il ity .
The December 1969 issue of the Paris monthly, Croissance des Jeunes Nations, c a rr ie d , under the t i t l e
" L iv re Noir: Torture e t T erreur au B r l s i l " , eleven documents, several reproduced here; almost a l l of
them had been presented e a r l i e r to the Holy Father, Paul V I , in a dossier whose v e ra c ity was a tte s te d to
by s ix t y of Europe's prominent in t e l le c t u a l s and r e lig io u s leaders of a l l f a i t h s . Moreover, the "Livre
Noir" was endorsed by eig h t in te r n a tio n a l organizations which subsequently established the In te rn a tio n a l
Support Committee. The January-February 1970 issue of Mensaje, the national monthly of the Jesuit Order
in C h ile , was another source of some of the documents contained in the dossier which the reader now has
in his hands.

I t is true that almost a l l of the material in the present dossier refers to events which took place
c h i e f l y , although not e x c lu s iv e ly , in 1969. The reader may wish to know p recisely what is happening today
and might ask, "Is to rt u r e s t i l l going on, now, in A p r i l , 1970, s ix years a f t e r the B r a z il ia n Army took
power by force?" There is , u n fo rtu n a te ly , a time lag between events in B ra zil where a d i c t a t o r i a l
s i t u a t i o n prevails and the a r r i v a l of information abroad. But, as recently as March 6 , 1970, a French
dele gation having ju s t returned from an eight-day mission in B r a z i l , declared, "the s it u a t io n in B razil
today is considerably more serious than th at observed in Greece la s t year" (see Le Monde, March 8 - 9 , 1970).
The two lawyers, sent on behalf of the In ternatio n al Federation of the Rights of Man and the French
branch of Amnesty In te r n a t io n a l, fu r t h e r affirmed that t o r t u r e is not only taking place, but i t has now
become "systematic and g e ne ra lize d". F i n a l l y , the two European spokesmen, who interviewed p u b lic , r e l i ­
gious and p riv a te persons, confirmed th at there were in March, 1970, s l i g h t l y less than 12,000 p o l i t i c a l
prisoners held in j a i l s a l l over the country and that the average age of these prisoners was 22 yearsi

A chronology has been included to help guide the reader through B ra z ilia n p o l i t i c a l events since 1964.
But, th is dossier is by no means an attempt to study th at long and tortuous process which, in the name
of the "democratic and C h r is tia n tr a d i t io n s of the West", has claimed so many v ictim s. Rather, th is
dossier is but a footnote, t r a g i c , authentic and crying out desperately fo r expressions of human in­
d ignation and humanitarian s o l i d a r i t y , to the contemporary h is to ry of B r a z il .

THE AMERICAN COMMITTEE FOR INFORMATION ON BRAZIL

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1. CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS
1964
March 31 The B r a z ilia n Armed Forces lead a successful coup d ' e t a t against the government of Joao
Goulart, which they accuse of having promoted the spread of communism and c orruptio n.
(The m i l i t a r y o ff i c e r s in B r a z i l , while sharing a d i s l i k e fo r the previous regime, are
divided on questions of how the country should be run. During the next years, " s o ft l i n e , "
"hard l i n e , " " n a t i o n a l i s t , " "Yankeephile," and "technocratic" elements in the m i l i t a r y
would be s truggling to impose t h e i r solutions to B r a z i l 's in s t i t u t i o n a l c r i s i s . This
chronology w i l l point to some of the events which show a progressive increase in repression
against c i v i l i a n fo rc e s .)

Apri I A p ro v is io n a l, " revo lu tion ary" m i l i t a r y ju n ta announces radical changes in the economic and
social p o lic ie s of the nation: Many of the laws passed by the preceding n a tio n a li s t govern­
ment are declared null and void, among them, the p r o f i t remittance law regulating the export
of c a p ita l by foreign companies, the n a tio n a liz a tio n of o i l r e f i n e r i e s , and the d i s t r i b u ­
tion of non-cultiv ated lands near federal roads to landless peasants.

A p r il 15 The leaders of the "March 31 Movement" name Marshal Castelo Branco to the B ra z ilia n p re s i­
dency. I n s t i t u t i o n a l Act No. 1 increases the power of the Executive and suspends some
c o n s titu tio n a l guarantees.

A pril-June Mass a rr e s ts . Many p o l i t i c a l leaders (including the la s t three elected Presidents) lose
t h e i r p o l i t i c a l righ ts fo r ten years. Several s ta te governors and 112 members of Congress
are deposed. Two thousand m i l i t a r y men are forced to r e t i r e . Federal 'interventors' take
over key trade unions. Peasant leagues are disbanded and national and s ta te student unions
are outlawed. Thousands of " In v e s tig a tio n Commissions" run by m i l i t a r y o f f i c i a l s are estab­
lished in local in s t i t u t i o n s throughout the country to e lim in a te dissidents at a grass
roots le v e l.

July 14 The Inter-American Commission of the A llia n c e fo r Progress approves the request of Roberto
Campos fo r $888 m i ll io n in economic aid during 1965 and 1966 .

1965
February 11 B ra zil and the U.S'. sign a t r e a t y insuring American investments in Brazil against losses
due to revolu tion or i n f l a t i o n . Damages are to be paid to businesses by the U.S. government
and charged to the B ra z ilia n d o l la r debt to the U.S.

May 22 B r a z ilia n troops f l y to Santo Domingo to j o i n US-commanded forces in cordoning o f f

Dominican C o n s titu tio n a lis t insurgents.

October 5 Elections fo r governors are held in several sta te s ; those opposition groups which are
allowed to campaign sweep the more important contests w ith impressive p l u r a l i t i e s .

October 6 The ju n ta decrees that control of s ta te p olic e and s e c u rity agencies w i l l be taken over by
the Federal Government.

October 27 The m i l i t a r y ju n ta responds to the f a i l u r e of the " revo lu tion ary" candidates to win popular
support with " In s t i t u t i o n a l Act No. 2; a l l p o l i t i c a l pa rtie s are dissolved and the powers
of the Executive are fu r t h e r increased; henceforth the President and the s ta te governors
w i l l be chosen by the " p u r ifie d " Congress, rather than by d ir e c t popular vote of t h e ir
co nstituencies.

October 29 Senator Wayne Morse asks fo r an end to economic and m i l i t a r y aid to B ra z il as a protest
against I n s t i t u t i o n a l Act No. 2.

November Two p a rtie s are organized under s t r i c t control of the Government. One is designated as
the government party (A llia n c e fo r National Renovation - ARENA), the other as the "loyal
opposition" (B r a z i lia n Democratic Movement - MDB).

1966
February 7 Former U.S. Ambassador to B r a z i l , Lincoln Gordon, ( ' 6 l - ' 6 6 ) on questioning during Senate
hearings on his nomination to Assistant Secretary of State fo r Inter-American A f f a i r s ,
vigorously defends the p o l i t i c a l and economic p o lic ie s of the B r a z ilia n government and
f r i e n d l y American re la tio n s towards i t .

A p r il 13 An AID report to U.S. Congress praises the conduct of the B ra z ilia n government since the
coup.

October 4 The War M in is te r , General Costa e S il v a , is elected President by the Congress. Only the
ARENA deputies vote; the others abstain. The opposition terms the act "an e le c to r a l f a r c e ."

1967
January 23 A new C onstitution is adopted which incorporates the " I n s t i t u t i o n a l Acts" issued since 1964.
 3
1967 (c o n t.)
Jan. 23 cont. I t gives the President the rig h t to promulgate laws and to declare a " s ta te of emergency"
(M a rtia l Law) without consulting Congress. A Press Law providing severe penalties fo r a n t i ­
government reports is promulgated.

March 2 Thousands of students gather s e c re tly in Rio de Janeiro f o r the purpose of reorganizing
the student movement on an underground basis. They issue a document condemning the " d ic t a ­
torship " as a servant of Yankee Imperialism.

March 11 A National Security Law is issued which permits the m i l i t a r y to in te r p r e t any opposition
as treason.

August 350 student representatives travel clan d estinely from a l l over B ra zil and meet s e c re tly to
re-construct the National Student Union (UNE) which has been outlawed since 1964. This is
UNE's 29th annual Congress. They e le c t leaders and agree that the student movement should
not concentrate on u n iv e rs ity issues, but should help mobilize popular resistance to the
"d ic ta to rs h i p ."

August 30 A broad c o a li t io n of major pre-coup p o l i t i c a l p e rs o n a litie s unites to work fo r a return to

c i v i l i a n government and democratic l i b e r t i e s . This "Frente Ampla" included former P re s i­
dent Kubitschek, most of the c e n t e r - l e f t , and even m i l i t a n t l y anti-communist Carlos Lacerda,
but gained l i t t l e support from any p o l it ic i a n s in o f f i c e .

1968
March 28 Police k i l l a student during a peaceful demonstration in Rio.

March 30 His funeral turns into a mass p ro te s t. Army tanks occupy the c i t y .

A p r il 3 V io le n t clashes erupt between students and p olic e in Rio, Sao Paulo, B r a s i l i a , Salvador,
and other c i t i e s . The demonstrators vehemently condemned American support f o r the d i c t a t o r ­
ship.

May Student-led demonstrations in major c i t i e s gain wide-spread public support. Hundreds of

people are imprisoned.

June 10 The "Frente Ampla" c o a li t io n is outlawed by decree.

June 16 Sixteen-thousand students s t r i k e in Rio.

June 22 Police k i l l s ix people during demonstrations in Rio. Five hundred students occupy the
Congress in B r a s i l i a .

June 27 One hundred thousand people demonstrate in Rio, c a l l i n g fo r "the end of the d ic ta t o r s h ip ."
Large demonstrations take place in B r a s i l i a , R e c ife , Salvador, Porto Alegre.

June June becomes known as "the month of blood." During th is month the d issolution of the
"Frente Ampla," the massacre of peaceful demonstrators, and the massive p olic e interventio n
in a l l centers of p o l i t i c a l ferment cut o f f a l l remaining avenues of open opposition to the
regime.

July 21 The National Confederation of Bishops condemns the Government's " f a s c i s t " doctrines of
national s e c u rity .

Aug.-Dec. Radical resistance movements launch a series of dramatic bank hold-ups and v io le n t symbolic
attacks against military-governmental buildings and United States corporate and government
o f f i c e s . Extreme rig h t t e r r o r i s t organizations step up assassination a c t i v i t i e s , with a l ­
leged governmental c o lla b o ra tio n . Among them, the most notorious of the professional k i l l e r s
are the Command fo r Communist Hunting (CCC) and the Anti-Communist Movement (MAC).

October One thousand u n iv e rs ity student representatives meeting s e c re tly in Sao Paulo fo r the 30th
Congress of the National Student Union are a rre ste d. This stroke wipes out the leadership
of the B r a z ilia n student movement.

December 13 Marshal Costa e S ilv a promulgates the " In s t i t u t i o n a l Act" No. 5. The Congress is dissolved.
This u ltim a te anti-dem ocratic move is believed to be a "coup w ith in the coup," handing
s ta t e power over to the most a u th o r ita r ia n sectors of the Army.

December Mass a r r e s t s . Witch hunts against c r i t i c s in the c i v i l service and armed forces. Total
censorship of the press, radio and te l e v is i o n . Loss of p o l i t i c a l r i g h t s , loss of jobs,
j a i l i n g , and constant harrassment of independent lib e r a l news e d ito r s , w r i t e r s , and p o l i t i ­
cians.

United States fin a n c ia l aid to B ra zil amounted to more than $948 m i l l i o n in loans from
1964 to 1968.
 4

1969
January The B r a z ilia n Supreme Court of Justice is res tru c tu re d . Three judges are purged and
deprived of p o l i t i c a l righ ts fo r ten years.

February 6 The M in is te r of Internal A f f a i r s , General Albuquerque Lima, thought to represent moderate

n a t io n a li s t sectors of the army, is discharged by dominant h a rd -lin e pro -U .S. generals.

May 30 Father Henrique, a s sistant to the Bishop Dorn Helder Camara is tortured and murdered by a
rig h t wing death squadron. This assassination provokes intense c o n f l i c t between the clergy
and the government.

August 15 Resistance groups in Sao Paulo seize a radio s ta tio n fo r t h i r t y minutes. They broadcast
th at a very important event w i l l soon take place.

August 31 I n s t i t u t i o n a l Act. No. 12 replaces President Costa e S i l v a , v ic tim of a heart a tta c k by a

m i l i t a r y tr iu m v ir a te instead of the Vice-P resident, a c i v i l i a n , who was c o n s t it u t i o n a l ly
mandated to assume the o f f i c e .

September 4 The American Ambassador, Burke E lb ric k , is kidnapped in Rio. His captors demand the
freedom of 15 p o l i t i c a l prisoners and the broadcasting of a manifesto as conditions fo r
the release of Mr. E lb ric k . Both sides carry out the agreement.

September 9 I n s t i t u t i o n a l Act No. 14 imposes the death penalty fo r "the crime of psychological warfare
and revolu tionary or subversive w ar." The Republic of B ra zil never previously had a death
penalty.

Sept-Present U.S. se c u rity agents flood B r a z i l . Mass a r r e s t s , t e r r o r and to rtures of p o l i t i c a l prison­

ers are conducted in a volume and b r u t a l i t y f a r exceeding the wanton b r u t a l i t y of Cuba under
B a tis ta .

October 17 A new C onstitution is promulgated which removes v i r t u a l l y a l l c o n s titu tio n a l lim ita tio n s on
the President's actions.

October 25 The command of the armed forces chose Four-Star General Garrastazii Medici as the new P re s i­
dent of B r a z i l . The "purged" Congress (about 200 of its members have been ousted since
1964) is reopened in order to r a t i f y his name.

November 4 Carlos Marighela, the most important g u e r r i l l a leader is k i l l e d in Sao Paulo.

Nov.-Dec. Many Dominican p r ie s t s , charged with c o lla bo ra tio n with the resistance movement, are
arrested and to rtu re d .

November S ix ty European clergymen and in t e l le c t u a l s d e liv e r to the Pope a dossier documenting t o r ­

tures in B r a z i l . They form the " In te r n a tio n a l Support Committee" to aid B r a z ilia n refugees.

1970
February 9 (From The New York Times). As of th is date the number of persons deprived of t h e ir p o l i t i c a l
righ ts fo r ten years has reached 1,116. Student leaders a ff ir m th at approximately one thou­
sand students have been expelled from B r a z ilia n U n iv e rs itie s fo r alleged p o l i t i c a l a c t i v i t i e s

February 1 1 A government decree estab lish in g pre-sale police censorship of books, magazines, and foreign
publications is issued with the avowed aim of keeping pornography o f f the market.

March 7 In his f i r s t news conference General E. Garrastazú Medici characterizes the B ra z ilia n regime
as a "Revolutionary S ta te " . "The m i l i t a r y " , he says, " w i ll continue in o f f i c e as long as
i t ta k e s ." The I n s t i t u t i o n a l Act No. 5, which empowers the president to govern by decree
and to suspend c o n s titu tio n a l guarantees, w i l l not be annulled "soon". In his words, " I t
was in s t i t u t e d too la t e , and i t is s t i l l too e a rly to revoke i t . "

March 11 Nobuo Okuchi, Japanese counsul general in Sao Paulo is kidnapped by underground m i l i t a n t s .
They demand the freedom of f i v e p o l i t i c a l prisoners and a guarantee of the humane treatment
of a l l other p o l i t i c a l prisoners as the conditions fo r the release of the diplomat. The
l i s t of prisoners includes a mother of three children (whose eighteen year old step-son
took part in the kidnapping), a Japanese B r a z il ia n , and a Catholic Mother Superior. Upon
landing in Mexico two days la t e r they a l l t e s t i f y to having been to rtu re d .

i
 II. STATEMENT OF FEMALE PRISONERS
HELD AT ILHA DAS FLORES, RIO DE JANEIRO
We have w r it t e n th is l e t t e r from where we are imprisoned on the 11ha das Flores ( I s l e of Flowers) in
Rio de Janeiro, Only now is information s ta r tin g to t r i c k l e out about the a t r o c i t i e s th at have been com­
mitted against p o l i t i c a l prisoners in opr country; thus, the B r a z ilia n public may s t i l l doubt th at these
criminal acts are r e a l l y taking place. We can assure everyone th at TORTURE DOES EXIST IN BRAZIL. What's
more: ALL THAT HAS BEEN SAID ABOUT THE METHODS OF TORTURE IS VERY LITTLE COMPARED WITH THE TRUE FACTS.
Here on the Ilh a das Flores we have been victims of and witnesses to t o r t u r e . We consider i t our duty
to tru th and j u s t i c e to bring these facts to l i g h t .

Many persons may ask why i t is only now that revelatio ns are being made in every corner of the country.
Up to now threats of more to r t u r e and even death have kept us s i l e n t . Recent statements, however, both
by the President o f the Republic and the M in is te r of Justice as well as reports in the domestic and i n t e r ­
national press, lead us to be lie v e th at we have some protection against r e p r is a ls .

The Facts
1. Z ilé a Resnik, 22, arrested June 5, 1969 and accused of belonging to the MR8 revolu tionary org ani­
z a tio n , was kept incommunicado fo r 45 days-- 35 more than even the m i l i t a r y code allows; she was fre qu e n tly
beaten.

2. Rosane Resnik, 20, Z il e a ' s s i s t e r , arrested July 27, 1969 on the same charges, was stripped naked
by her t o r t u r e r s , beaten, and subjected to e l e c t r i c shocks on various parts of her body, including her
nipples.

3. Ina de Souza Medeiros, 20, w ife of Marco Antonio F a ria Medeiros, arrested July 6, 1969 in C u ritib a
on the same charges, was made to witness the tortures i n f l i c t e d upon one of her f r ie n d s , M ilton Gaia L e ite .
He was hanging naked from a pole while a mass was being transmitted by a radio playing f u l l b la s t to
drown out his sh rieks. At the j a i l of the p o l i t i c a l police (DOPS), she was to ld th at her husband, who had
been arrested two months before, had died. She panicked, though the information l a t e r proved to be fa l s e .
A f t e r she was brought to the Ilh a das F lo re s , she was beaten, underwent e l e c t r i c shocks, and was threatened
with sexual a s s a u lt.

4 . Maria Candida de Souza Gouveia, 22, arrested July 3, 1969 in C u r it i b a , on the same charges, was
beaten and kicked on the spot. Her w ris ts and ankles were tw isted . She was made to s t r i p .

5. Maria Mota Alma A lv a re z , 20, arrested July 9, 1969 in Rio de Janeiro, was stripped and beaten.
One of her fingers was broken, evidence f o r which can be seen in photographs taken by jo u r n a li s t s at the
time they were invited to meet members of MR8.

6. Maryjane V ie i r a Lisboa, 22, arrested September 2, I 969 in Rio de Janeiro, accused of being a mem­
ber of the Popular Action revolu tionary movement, was s trip p e d , beaten, and subjected to e l e c t r i c shocks
th at were stopped only when she fa in te d from a heart f a i l u r e .

7. Marcia Savaget F ia n i, 2b, arrested same date, place, and on same charges (as 6) received same
treatment except that dowsing in water in te n s ifie d the e l e c t r i c shocks, re s u ltin g in the p a r t i a l paralyza-
tio n of her rig h t fin g e rs . She was kept incommunicado fo r 14 days.

8. Solange Maria Santana, 25, as above (7) went insane fo r a w h ile .

9. 11da Brandle S ie g l, 25, arrested October 29, 1969 in Rio, was s trip p e d , beaten, and subjected to
e l e c t r i c shocks even on her nipples.

10. Maria Elódia Alencar, 38, arrested a day l a t e r , as above. S trangling forced her to sign her last
w i l l and testament. Her to rtu r e rs kept threatening to a rr e s t and to r t u r e her 15-year old son.

11, 12, and 13. P r is c i la B re d a rio l, 23, Vania Esmanhoto, 2b, and V ic t o r i a Pamplona, 26, m i l i t a n t mem­
bers of Catholic Student Youth (JEC) , arrested October 31, 1969 in Rio on charges of belonging to Popular
Action, were a l l beaten and forced to lis te n to the c rie s of P r i s c i l a ' s husband. Celso B re d a rio l, and of
Geraldo Azevedo, V ic t o r i a 's fia n c e . Both were being to rtured next door a t the o ffic e s of the Naval In fo r ­
mation Center (CENIMAR).

14. Dorma Tereza de O l i v e i r a , 25, arrested October 30, 1969 in R io, got the usual beatings and e l e c t r i c
shocks plus s tra ng lin g and dowsing. Pincers applied to her breasts produced wounds, as did needles thrust
under her fin g e r n a il s .

15. Marta Maria Klagsbrunn, 22, arrested September 1969 in Rio, was tortured by her j a i l e r s who
several times threatened to take her to see her husband, V ic to r Hugo Klagsbrunn, who was also undergoing
to r t u r e .

16. A rlin d a ----------, arrested November 14, 1969 in Rio, is s t i l l incommunicado on the day we w r it e th is
l e t t e r (December 8, 1969) .
6
We can a l s o t e s t i f y t o many o t h e r cases o f t o r t u r e . We can c i t e , f o r exam ple , t h e case o f Jean Marc
Van d e r W eld , p r e s i d e n t o f t h e N a t i o n a l S tu d e n t U n io n . F or s i x days he was b e a te n , suspended from a p o l e ,
and s u b j e c t e d t o e l e c t r i c s h o c k s . As a r e s u l t h i s e a r drums have been p e r f o r a t e d and he s u f f e r s fr o m s e r ­
io us n e u r o l o g i c a l d i s o r d e r s . A l s o t o r t u r e d were C e ls o B r e d a r i o l and M a r io Fonseca N e te . The l a t t e r ,
a lo n g w i t h M i l t o n Gaia L e i t e , underwent t h e t o r t u r e c a l l e d " c o c k - o n - a - s t r i n g " ( " g a l e t o " ) : a b o n f i r e is
s e t under a body h a n g in g fr o m a p o l e .

M a r ia L u iz a G a r c ia Ros, 18, was a n o th e r c a s e . She was a r r e s t e d i n R i o , r a p e d , and t h e n r e l e a s e d , f o r

h e r in nocence o f membership in a r e v o l u t i o n a r y o r g a n i z a t i o n was e s t a b l i s h e d . ( T r a n s l a t o r 's note: th e
p a s s iv e v o ic e s h e re make i t i m p o s s i b l e t o r e n d e r i n t o t h e a c t i v e v o i c e : who raped h e r? who pro ved h e r
i nnocence?)

We have a r r i v e d a t f o u r p r i n c i p a l c o n c l u s i o n s :
1. T o r t u r e s e s s io n s a re g e n e r a l l y h e ld a t t h e I 1ha das F l o r e s p r i s o n , a t t h e o f f i c e s o f t h e Naval
I n f o r m a t i o n C e n te r on t h e f o u r t h f l o o r o f t h e Naval M i n i s t r y , and a t t h e j a i l s o f t h e p o l i t i c a l p o l i c e
(DOPS) in R io and C u r i t i b a .

2. The t o r t u r e r s a re h i g h - r a n k i n g o f f i c e r s o f t h e Naval I n f o r m a t i o n C e n t e r . T h e i r t o r t u r i n g is
known t o t h e i r commanding o f f i c e r s and t o a l l m i l i t a r y p e rs o n n e l on d u t y h e re . T o r t u r e r s t r y t o h id e
t h e i r i d e n t i t y under f a l s e names such as D r . C l a u d i o , Commander M ik e , D r . A l f r e d o , D r . Breno and o t h e r s .

3. Some p e t t y o f f i c e r s and p r i v a t e s a l s o t a k e p a r t i n t o r t u r e s e s s i o n s , namely S g t . A l v a r o and

P vt. S e rg io .

if. T o r t u r e r s o f t e n v i s i t th e I 1ha das F l o r e s as " t e c h n i c a l a d v i s e r s " o f t h e commanding o f f i c e r ,

Comdr. Clemente José M o n t e i r o F i l h o .

We know t h a t o u r p r e s e n t s t a n c e o f r e v e a l i n g t o r t u r e can s p a r k r e p r i s a l s a g a i n s t u s . We a re a f r a i d ,
because i t w ould n o t be t h e f i r s t t im e t h a t " a t t e m p t - t o - e s c a p e " o r " s u i c i d e " have been f a k e d so as t o con­
c e a l th e f a c t s and t o " v e r i f y " t h e o f f i c i a l v e r s i o n o f t h e f a c t s . A l l pers ons i n t e r e s t e d in g e t t i n g a t
t h e t r u t h and in p u n i s h i n g t h e g u i l t y s h o u ld know t h a t we a re s u b j e c t t o a l l k in d s o f v i o l e n c e . To b r i n g
t h i s s t a t e o f a f f a i r s t o an end, we need more t h a n e v e r b e f o r e t h e h e lp o f e v e ry o n e i n t h e c o u n t r y .

I 1ha das F l o r e s , 8 December 1969

N o te : A ll th e s e cases o f t o r t u r e have been made known t o

M a r s h a ll G a rr a s t a z ú M e d i c i , P r e s i d e n t o f t h e U n it e d S t a t e s o f B r a z i l
M on s ig n o r M on zo n n i, Papal N u n c io
Jaime C a r d i n a l Camara, A r c h b is h o p o f R io de J a n e i r o , and o t h e r a u t h o r i t i e s .

The s o l e r e s u l t : renewal o f p re s s c e n s o r s h i p and a n a t i o n - w i d e ban in a l l mass media on r e f e r e n c e t o

to r tu r e o f p o l i t i c a l p riso n e rs.

REVISED NATIONAL SECURITY LAW OF 1969

The f o l l o w i n g d e c r e e , p u b l i s h e d in March , 1969, s i g n i f i c a n t l y in c r e a s e s t h e c a t e g o r i e s o f a c t s con­
s i d e r e d as c r im e s a g a i n s t n a t i o n a l s e c u r i t y and s t i f f e n s t h e p e n a l t i e s f o r such a c t s . I t c re a te s the con­
c e p t o f " a d v e r s e p s y c h o l o g i c a l w a r f a r e " , e s t a b l i s h e s m i l i t a r y c o u r t s t o ju d g e c i v i l i a n s , d e f i n e s s u b v e r s i v e
pro paganda, ta k e s away ( i n p r a c t i c e ) t h e r i g h t o f d e f e n s e , and g iv e s t h e armed f o r c e s power t o i m p r is o n any
c i t i z e n w i t h o u t due pro c e s s o f law.

The f o l l o w i n g a r t i c l e s c o n s t i t u t e t h e key p r o v i s i o n s :
A r t i c l e 12
( I t is p r o h i b i t e d ) t o f o r m , t o j o i n , o r t o m a i n t a i n any ty p e o f a s s o c i a t i o n , c o m m it t e e , o r o r g a n i z a ­
t i o n o f c l a s s o r g ro up w h ic h , under t h e o r i e n t a t i o n o r w i t h t h e a i d o f a f o r e i g n government o r i n t e r n a t i o n a l
o r g a n i z a t i o n , c a r r i e s on a c t i v i t i e s h a rm f u l o r dangerous t o th e n a t i o n a l s e c u r i t y . P e n a lt y : Im prisonment
fr o m two t o f i v e y e a rs f o r o r g a n i z e r s o r m a i n t a i n e r s , and fr o m s i x months t o two y e a rs f o r o t h e r s .
( T r a n s la to r 's o b s e rv a tio n : In d e t e r m i n i n g w h e th e r o r n o t an o r g a n i z a t i o n i s h a rm f u l t o t h e n a t i o n a l
s e c u r i t y , t h e P r e s i d e n t o f t h e R e p u b lic and h i s C o u n c il have a b s o l u t e d i s c r e t i o n .
A r t i c l e 19
I t i s p r o h i b i t e d t o d i v u l g e , by any mass means o f c o m m u n ic a tio n , f a l s e o r t e n d e n t i o u s news, o r a t r u e
f a c t t r u n c a t e d o r s l a n t e d so as t o c r e a t e o r a t t e m p t t o c r e a t e i l l - w i l l among t h e p e o p le a g a i n s t t h e con­
s titu te d a u th o ritie s . P e n a lt y : D e t e n t i o n fr o m t h r e e months t o one y e a r .
Paragraph 1
I f such d i v u l g a t i o n p ro vokes a d i s t u r b a n c e o f p u b l i c o r d e r o r exposes t o danger t h e good name,
t h e a u t h o r i t y , t h e c r e d i t , o r t h e p r e s t i g e o f B r a z i l , t h e p e n a l t y s h a l l be d e t e n t i o n fr o m s i x months
t o two y e a r s .
Paragraph 2
I f t h e d i r e c t o r o f o r p e rs o n r e s p o n s i b l e f o r t h e newspaper, m ag a zin e , r a d i o o r t e l e v i s i o n
s t a t i o n i s fo u nd a c c o u n t a b le f o r t h e d i v u l g a t i o n s , he w i l l a l s o be f i n e d an amount o f 50 t o 100 tim es
th e v a lu e o f t h e lo c a l minimum wage, t h e f i n e t o be d o u b le d s h o u ld t h e te rm s o f t h e p r e v i o u s p a ra g ra p h
a p p ly .
Paragraph 3
The p e n a l t i e s s h a l l be a p p l i e d i n d o u b le in t h e e v e n t t h e i n f r a c t i o n is r e p e a t e d .
( T r a n s la to r 's o b s e rv a tio n : Under t h i s a r t i c l e , anyone who c r i t i c i z e s any a c t i o n o f a g o v e rn ­
mental a u t h o r i t y may be fo u nd g u i l t y o f " a t t e m p t i n g t o promote i l l - w i l l among th e p e o p le a g a i n s t th e
g o v e rn m e n t" , and may be im p ris o n e d f o r " c o m m i t t i n g a c r im e a g a i n s t t h e n a t i o n a l s e c u r i t y " .
 III. THE TRAGIC DEATH OF CHAEL CHARLES SHREIER
(This document is a compilation of information from several sources.)

Chael Charles Shreier, a 23 year old medical student from Sao Paulo, was arrested together with two
friends in Rio de Janeiro on November 21, 1969, for belonging to a subversive organization.

Shreier resisted arrest, but he and his companions were taken forcibly to Guanabara State Police
headquarters. Considered to be important prisoners, the t r i o was transferred to Army headquarters at the
Vila Hi 1it a r in Rio de Janeiro under the command of Captain Joao Luis. Late that very night, Shreier's
body was removed to the Central Army Hospital; Brigadier General Galeno da Penha Franco asserted that
Shreier was dead on a r r iv a l.

Only three days later did the victim's parents, Emilia Brickman Schreier and Ari Schreier, learn of
th e ir son's death. An autopsy signed by Dr. Rubem Pedro Macuco attributed the cause of the student's
death to "abdominal contusion with rupture of the transverse mesocolon and mesentery, with internal hem­
orrhage".

Leading Rio newspapers, JORNAL DO BRASIL and 0 GLOBO, reported on the incident. Their accounts
appear to be based on information provided by the same police sources who were holding the three prisoners
incommunicado. From these bits and pieces, Shreier's ordeal is beginning to emerge. During the interroga­
tions at police headquarters in Rio de Janeiro, police agents became convinced that Shreier and his friends
were purposely giving false information. At that point, the t r i o was taken - alive - to the Vila Hi 1i t a r ;
but, from i t Shreier emerged dead only several hours la te r.

Besides the c e r t ific a te of autopsy, the strongest evidence that Shreier had been savagely tortured and
beaten to death came at his burial service. His body had been flown from Rio de Janeiro to Sao Paulo and
taken to the Jewish Cemetery. There in compliance with the Jewish ritu a l of purific a tion , the coffin was
opened (but not without d i f f i c u l t y , perhaps because those who had sealed i t shut were unfamiliar with Jewish
rites and, moreover, simply never expected the coffin to be opened). The body showed signs of the autopsy:
stitches on the thorax and legs; there were also signs of blood in nostrils and purple bruises over the
face and abdomen. One of Shreier's cousins remarked upon leaving the ceremony, "He was beaten like a dog."

The Shreier case did not close with the burial of his mortal remains. Ten of his former colleagues at
the Sao Paulo Medical School who attended the funeral were called in by the police for questioning. Soon
a ft e r , the e d ito ria l s ta f f of the Brazilian weekly magazine, VEJA, (which had published the above facts
in its issue of December 10, 1969, number 66) was paid a v i s i t by m ilita ry officers who threateningly pro­
hibited publication of any further denunciations of to rture. (See THE NEW YORK TIMES, January 6, 1970.)

A rtic le 39
The following constitute subversive propaganda:
I. The u tiliz a t io n of whatever means of mass communication, such as newspapers, magazines, period­
icals, books, b ulletin s, pamphlets, radio, television, movies, theater and the lik e , as vehicles of pro­
paganda of psychologically adverse warfare or of revolutionary warfare.
II. The recruitment of persons in th e ir places of work or study.
I I I . A r a l ly , public meeting, parade or march.
IV. A prohibited s trik e .
V. Abuse, calumny, or defamation directed at an organ or e n tity which exercises public authority,
or at a public o f f i c i a l because of his functions.
VI. A manifestation of s o lida rity with any one of the acts mentioned in the preceding items.
Pena Ity:Detent ion from six months to two years.
Paragraph
I f any of the actions specified in this a r t ic le causes a threat to or an attack upon the
national security, the penalty shall be detention from one to four years.
A rtic le bh
Civilians as well as m ilita ry personnel shall be subject to the m ilita ry courts described in A rtic le
122, Paragraphs 1 and 2, of the Constitution, as amended by Institutional Act Number 6 of February I , 1969,
in relation to the process and judgement of the crimes defined in this decree, as well as those perpetrated
against m ilita ry institutions.
A rtic le 95
The special m ilita ry court established in this decree shall prevail over any other, even as regards
crimes committed by means of the press, radio or television.
Art ic ie 46
The Code of M i li ta r y Justice shall be applied in the proceedings and t r i a l s insofar as i t does not
conflict with the dispositions of the Constitution and this decree.
A rtic le 97
During the police investigations, the accused may be imprisoned up to th ir t y days by the o ffic e r in
charge of the inquiry, who should inform the proper ju d ic ia l authority of the imprisonment. This period
may be extended once, by means of a documented request presented by the o ffic e r in charge of the inquiry to
the authority who nominated him.
Paragraph i
The o ffic e r in charge of the inquiry may hold the accused incommunicado up to ten days i f this
measure becomes necessary for the police and m ilita ry questionings.
Paragraph 2
I f he considers i t necessary, the o ffic e r in charge shall s o l i c i t , within the period cited or its
extension, the preventive imprisonment of the accused, observing the dispositions of A rtic le 149 of
the Code of M ilita r y Justice. . ,
(cont. next page)
8
IV. STATEMENT OF DOM HELDER CAMARA
ON THE MURDER OF FATHER HENRIQUE
Recife, May 27. 1963.
1. We hereby f u l f i l l the painful duty of condemning the barbaric murder of Father Antonio Henrique
Pereira Neto, committed last night, May 26th, here in the c ity of Recife.

2. Father Antonio Henrique, who was 28 years old and had been a priest for the past three and a half
years, had consecrated his l i f e to apostolic work among young men and women especially among university
students. According to the testimony of several couples, he spent yesterday afternoon and evening until
10:30 p.m. at a meeting in Parnamirim /a Recife neighborhooc^ with a group of parents and their children,
in line with his deep committment to bridging the generation gap.

3. This crime bears a il the marks of refined perversity (among other c ru e ltie s , the victim was
bound, hung, dragged across the ground and shot three times through the head); but what makes i t particu­
la r ly grave is the moral certainty that this brutal offense is just one more in a premeditated series that
has included threats and warnings.

k . F ir s t , there were threats written on the walls of buildings, sometimes followed by gunshots. The
Manguinho Palace /t h e archdiocesan chancery o f f i c e / has been covered with numerous g r a f i t t i of this type.
Shots have been fired at J i r i q u i t i /th e central o ffice for the diffe re n t services administered by the
archdiocese/, while the Archbishop's residence at the Fronteiras church has also been fire d upon and
covered with g r a f i t t i .

5. Then came the threatening phone calls announcing that the next victims had already been marked.
The f i r s t was Candido Pinto de Melo, an engineering student in his fourth year and President of the Union
of Students of Pernambuco. Today he is paralyzed with a broken spine. The second was a young priest
whose only crime had been to exercise his apostolate in student c irc le s .

6. As Christians, following the example of Christ and Saint Stephen, the f i r s t martyr, we ask God to
forgive the murderers, repeating the words of the Master: "They know not what they do". But, we believe
in the right and duty to raise up our protest so that, at the very least, the s in is te r work of this new
death squad may not continue.

7. May Father Antonio Henrique's s acrifice obtain God's blessing on both the continuation of the work
for which he gave his l i f e and the conversion of his executioners.

Recife, May 27, 1969

Helder, Archbishop of Recife and Olinda
José Lamartine, a u x ilia r bishop and vicar general
Msgr. Arnaldo Cabral de Sousa, episcopal vicar
Msgr. Isnaido Alves de Fonseca, episcopal vicar
Msgr. José Hernani Pinheiro, episcopal vicar

A rtic le 48
The provisions concerning preventive imprisonment contained in the Code of M ilita ry Justice are appli­
cable at any stage of the proceedings.
A rtic le 49
Individual or collective proceedings may be instigated against the infractors of any of the provisions
of this decree.
A rtic le 5^
The defense, in the course of the proceedings, may indicate two witnesses for each of the accused, and
the two witnesses should present themselves, whether or not they are served with a summons, on the day
and hour set for the inquiry.
Paragraph
Defense witnesses who f a i l to appear at the appointed time without a j u s t i f i a b l e motive verified
by the Council, w i ll no longer be heard; th e ir absence w ill be considered desistance.
(Translator's observation: According to A rtic le 53, the prosecution may name up to three witnesses:
the defense is entitled to only two. It is not required that defense witnesses be summoned, and i f
the la tte r do not appear because they were not served, they wil_l_be considered as desisting and their
testimony w ill no longer be heard.
A rtic le 62
An individual condemned to imprisonment for more than two years w ill also be subject to suspension of
his p o litic a l rights from two to ten years.
Art icle 63
Suspended sentences for crimes described in this decree are prohibited.
A rtic le 64
Imprisonment shall be imposed in a m ilita ry or a c iv i li a n j a i l , at the c r i t e r i a of the judge, but
without penitentiary regime.
A rtic le 65
Probation w ill be governed by the terms of m ilita ry penal legislation.
A r t i c l e 66
No bail w ill be permitted for the crimes described in this decree.
 9

V. TESTIMONY OF AN ARRESTED PEASANT LEADER

"On July 13, 1968, the police committed a barbarous crime against the people of Pindaré Mirim, a
v i l l a g e in the northern s ta t e of Maranhao. Seven policemen, armed with r i f l e s and submachineguns, f i r e d on
rural workers who were waiting to be tr eated at the Medical Center. They gravely wounded Manuel Conceicão,
president of the peasant union of Pindaré M i r i m . . . The union issued th is report of how the crime took place:

" I , Manuel Conceicao dos Santos, president of the union of rural workers of Pindaré Mirim, deny the
v e ra c ity of the reports published in the Sao Luis papers and above a l l of the statements made by the
Secretary of the State Police on July 27th in regard to my case.

" In the name of t r u t h , I must declare the follow ing: On the morning of the 13th of July l a s t , several
workers were w a iting to be treated at the union's medical center. A pickup truck stopped nearby; seven men
armed with r i f l e s and revolvers got out. The p olic e commissioner, accompanied by a s o ld ie r , c a lle d to me
and I walked towards him. To my u tte r s u rp ris e , the so ld iers seized me and f i r e d f i v e shots into my legs
as well as opened f i r e upon many witnesses, among them women and c h ild re n . I was thrown into the truck
li k e an animal and driven from the scene to the prison s u ffe rin g serious wounds in both f e e t . Only around
5:00 p.m. did I receive f i r s t a id . Three days la t e r they tre a te d me again a f t e r my toes had become h a lf
ro tte n . On the 17th, they freed me; so as not to die I had to go to Sao Luis to have a leg cut o f f be­
cause of gangrene."

"SELF CONTROL’ OF THE PRESS

THE FOLLOWING IS AN ABRIDGEMENT OF AN ORDER SENT BY THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE TO ALL EDITORS OF NEWS­
PAPERS AND OWNERS OF TELEVISION AND RADIO STATIONS THE WEEK BEFORE MR. NELSON ROCKEFELLER'S V IS IT TO
BRAZIL, |N JUNE 1969.

No news a b o u t , comment upon o r i n t e r v i e w s w i t h anyone who has had h i s p o l i t i c a l r i g h t s t a k e n away;

No r e p o r t i n g about s t u d e n t movements whic h have been d i s s o l v e d by th e g o v e rn m e nt, n o r ab o ut s t u d e n t
p o l i t i ca I a c t i v i t y ;
No c r i t i c i s m o f government a c t i o n t a k i n g away p o l i t i c a l r i g h t s o f c i t i z e n s o r d i s m i s s i n g them from
t h e i r emp lo ym e n t;
No p u b l i c a t i o n o f a n y t h i n g t h a t m ig h t c r e a t e h o s t i l i t y to w a rd government o f f i c i a l s ;
No c r i t i c i s m o f t h e economic p o l i c y o f th e g o vern m ent;
No news about p o l i t i c a l a r r e s t s , e x c e p t when p r o v id e d by t h e g overn m ent;
No news about t h e p o l i t i c a l a c t i v i t y o f th e c l e r g y , go m a n if e s t o s o f c h u rc h le a d e rs o r i n t e r v i e w s
w i t h them t h a t m ig h t c r e a t e t e n s io n s ‘ o f a r e l i g i o u s n a t u r e " ;
No news about w o r k e r s ' movements, s t r i k e s o r o t h e r a c t s c o n s id e r e d s u b v e r s i v e w h ic h may o c c u r in
B r a z i l o r in f o r e i g n c o u n t r i e s ;
No news o f o p p o s i t i o n t o th e R o c k e f e l l e r v i s i t w h e t h e r t h a t o p p o s i t i o n o c c u rs i n B r a z i l o r in o t h e r
c o u n tr i e s .
10
VI. THE REGIME VS. DOM WALDYR CALHEIROS
Introduction

In Ju ly , 1969, Dom Waldyr Calheiros, the 46 year old Bishop of Volta Redonda, the center of the
B ra z ilia n steel industry, joined eleven of his priests in a l e t t e r charging th at a labor leader of his dio ­
cese had been tortured during an in te rro ga tio n a t a local army u n i t . The general in charge of the u nit
where the labor leader was being held ordered an inquiry a t which the alleged to rt u r e v ic tim and his physi­
cian were questioned. The general closed his hearing asserting th a t there had been no to r t u r e and th at the
bishop was an a g it a t o r .

On December 4 , 19&9, a m i l i t a r y court indicted Dom Waldyr on charges of subversion; f i f t e e n p rie s ts of

his diocese were also brought up on charges but, t h e i r t r i a l , li k e the bishop's is pending; no date has
yet been s e t.

The fo llowing undated l e t t e r from Dom Waldyr to his fe llo w bishops illum inates the army's ro le in
sowing discord w ith in the ranks of B r a z i l 's clergy:

L e tte r from Msgr. V a ld ir Calheiros to B ra z ilia n Bishops

I be lie v e I am follow ing the wishes of my fe llo w bishops by informing them of the m i l i t a r y case
brought against me and 15 p rie s ts of the Diocese. During the in q u iry , 25 p rie s ts were c a lle d to t e s t i f y
a t the barracks of the F i r s t Armoured B a tta lio n by Col. Moacyr P e re ira . This created a clim ate of a n xiety.
A few days before the investigatio ns began, the secretary of the Priests Council came to see me to say that
a group of 12 p rie s ts had met to request in tervention of the Holy See in the Diocese. La te r, at the general
meeting and r e t r e a t of the c le rg y , one of the prie s ts to ld me that the colonel had le t i t be known to these
p rie s ts th a t " i f a request fo r in terventio n was made they would not be subjected to inquiry and th at i f i t
was accepted and the Bishop removed, he would drop the case". Only two p rie s ts accepted th is proposal. The
group of 12 broke up soon a f t e r , but there was a r i f t among the clergy and the clim ate o f d is tr u s t has nót
yet completely disappeared. A c h a r a c te r i s ti c of such in q u irie s is the attempt to p i t p rie s ts against
t h e i r Bishop.

The p rie s ts who are accused are at peace with themselves because they do not fe e l abandoned because
the Bishop is involved in the case.

The local press is a t the service of the m i l i t a r y a u th o r itie s and only publishes what is slanderous,
detrimental or lacking in respect to the Bishop, the p rie s ts and the Church. Colonel Pereira states over
the radio th at I am a Communist. The B r a z ilia n press has never heard my side; only the foreign press has.

The reactions of our brothers of the Episcopacy are v a rie d. Some are worried and have v i s i t e d me
personally to show t h e i r sympathy or have sent re presentatives. Others th in k we should t r y and seek a com­
promise with the m i l i t a r y a u t h o r it i e s ; some be lie v e i t ' s simply a "personal m atter".

1. I cannot see how th is can be considered "a personal matter" when the superiors of the colonel who
presides over the case are lending t h e ir support and bringing me before the Court. I t is these men who
govern the country, who drag the local Church before the trib u n a ls and slander the Bishop not only in his
own diocese but a l l over B r a z i l , since the f a c t th at we are c rim in a lly accused is common knowledge. Even
i f the case is not followed up, the inquiry and defamation remain.

2. They bring 16 P rie s ts in to disrepute before t h e i r parishes and do i t in such a way as to leave, at
least one, in a very d i f f i c u l t p o s ition .

3. They bring d is c re d it to the Church wherever they can and by every possible means.

4 . The less enlightened Catholics are in doubt, fo r they hear on the radio and read in the newspapers
accusations and insults against us and accusations that we are Communist a g ita to r s and subversive agents.

A fte r a l l that has happened i t is impossible to take steps which would appear as a request fo r clemency.
I do not consider that a bishop is humiliated by s i t t i n g on the bench of the acctrsed when the crime imputed
is th at of preaching the Gospel and of defending a poor to rtured workman. To excuse oneself before the
oppressor fo r being oppressed would be r e a l l y h u m ilia tin g . This is not p rid e , but conviction of my respon­
s i b i l i t i e s f o r my own acts . I understand b e tte r today the words of the Lord: " I f I have spoken i l l , prove
i t , but i f I have spoken w e l l , why beatest thou me?" (John 18: 2 3 ). These men should be c a lle d to account.
But by whom?

On thinking over the events with a group of workmen, one of them said to me: "Your Honour, who can
speak?... I f you are accused of having spoken, being who you a re , what would happen to us, who are simple
workmen?"

I t would be a crime to keep s i l e n t in face of the fa c t s . Is th at to be subversive? To be s ile n t? To

acquiesce? Perhaps they would p re fe r that the Church remain dumb in the face of clamorous f a c t s . Then they
would not t r y to silence the Church.
 11

P le a se t r y t o u n d e r s ta n d : I am n e i t h e r d e p r e s s e d n o r H u r t by t h e h o s t i l i t y a g a i n s t me and t h e l o c a l
C h u rch . No. I , have m e r e ly w anted t o s t a t e th e t r u t h f a i t h f u l l y . 1 am a t t h e d i s p o s a l o f a n y who w i s h
t o c l a r i f y a n y p o i n t s w h i c h m i g h t seem u n c l e a r t o th e m .

LAW PERTAINING TO SCHOOLS AND UNIVERSITIES (Decree 477)

TEACHERS, STUDENTS AND EMPLOYEES OF EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS WHO PARTICIPATE IN STRIKES, DESTROY PROPERTY
(INSIDE OR OUTSIDE OF SCHOOLS), PARTICIPATE IN STREET MARCHES AND UNAUTHORIZED RALLIES, OR DISTRIBUTE
"SUBVERSIVE MATERIAL", WILL BE PUNISHED UNDER DECREE ^77 BY THE FOLLOWING PENALTIES: PROFESSORS AND EMPLOY­
EES WILL BE SUMMARILY DISMISSED, AND BANNED FROM EMPLOYMENT IN ANY OTHER EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION DURING A
FIVE YEAR PERIOD; STUDENTS WILL BE EXPELLED, AND BANNED FROM MATRICULATING IN ANY OTHER EDUCATIONAL IN ST I­
TUTION DURING A THREE YEAR PERIOD, IF THE STUDENT IS ON SCHOLARSHIP, HE SHALL LOSE IT AND BECOME INELIGIBLE
FOR ANY SCHOLARSHIP AID FOR A PERIOD OF FIVE YEARS ( I F A FOREIGNER, THE SCHOLARSHIP STUDENT WILL BE EX­
PELLED FROM THE COUNTRY). DECREE 977 WAS ISSUED ON FEBRUARY 2 6 1969 , .
The t e x t o f th e d e c re e in c lu d e s th e f o l l o w i n g : "Under t h e a u t h o r i t y c o n f e r r e d on him by t h e f i r s t
p a ra g ra ph o f th e second a r t i c l e o f I n s t i t u t i o n a l A c t Number 5 , o f December 13, 1968, t h e P r e s i d e n t o f th e
Repub 1i c d e c r e e s :
A rtic le I
A t e a c h e r , s t u d e n t , o f f i c i a l o r employee o f any p u b l i c o r p r i v a t e e d u c a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t i o n commits a
d i s c i p l i n a r y i n f r a c t i o n i f he:
I. Promotes o r i n c i t e s th e o u t b r e a k o f a movement w h ic h has as i t s o b j e c t i v e th e p a r a l y s i s o f aca­
demic a c t i v i t y , o r i f he p a r t i c i p a t e s in such a movement;
II. A t t a c k s pers ons o r d e s t r o y s p r o p e r t y , w h e th e r w i t h i n o r w i t h o u t sc h o o l b u i l d i n g s o r g ro u n d s ;
III. A c t s t o o r g a n i z e , o r p a r t i c i p a t e in s u b v e r s i v e movements, s t r e e t marches o r u n a u t h o r iz e d r a l l i e s ;
IV. Pr oduces, p r i n t s , poss e s s es , o r d i s t r i b u t e s s u b v e r s i v e m a t e r i a l o f any n a t u r e ;
V. Kidnaps o r h o ld s c a p t i v e th e d i r e c t o r o r any member o f th e f a c u l t y , o f f i c i a l o r employee o f an
e d u c a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t i o n , o r a government agent o r s t u d e n t ;
V I. Uses th e sc h o o l b u i l d i n g o r grounds f o r s u b v e r s i v e pu rp o se o r t o commit any a c t a g a i n s t m ora ls
o r pub I i c o r d e r .
Paragraph 1
The i n f r a c t i o n s d e f i n e d in t h i s a r t i c l e s h a l l r e s u l t in t h e f o l l o w i n g pu n is h m e n t:
I. I f th e i n f r a c t o r is a member o f th e t e a c h i n g s t a f f , and o f f i c i a l o r an employee o f t h e e d u c a t i o n ­
a l i n s t i t u t i o n , t h e p e n a l t y s h a l l be d i s m i s s a l and p r o h i b i t i o n fr o m b e in g a p p o i n t e d , a d m i t t e d , o r em­
p lo y e d by any o t h e r e d u c a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t i o n f o r a p e r i o d o f f i v e y e a r s .
II. I f th e i n f r a c t o r is a s t u d e n t , t h e p e n a l t y s h a l l be e x p u l s i o n and p r o h i b i t i o n from m a t r i c u l a t i o n
in any o t h e r e d u c a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t i o n f o r a p e r i o d o f t h r e e y e a r s .
Pa ra g r a p h 2
I f th e i n f r a c t o r is th e b e n e f i c i a r y o f a s c h o l a r s h i p o r any gove rn m e nta l f u n d s , he s h a l l f o r f e i t
same and w i l l become i n e l i g i b l e f o r such a i d d u r i n g a p e r i o d o f f i v e y e a r s .
Paragraph 3
I f th e i n f r a c t o r is a f o r e i g n s c h o l a r s h i p r e c i p i e n t , he s h a l l be asked t o le a v e th e c o u n t r y
immed i a t e l y .
A rtic le 2
The i n v e s t i g a t i o n o f th e i n f r a c t i o n s t o whic h t h i s la w - d e c r e e r e f e r s s h a l l be c o n d uc te d in summary
p ro c e e d in g s t o be c o n c lu d e d w i t h i n an i n e x t e n s i b l e p e r i o d o f t w e n t y days.
Paragraph 1
When t h e r e is s u s p i c i o n o f a c r i m e , th e d i r e c t o r o f t h e e d u c a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t i o n s h a l l t a k e in»ne-
d i a t e s te p s t o f a c i l i t a t e a p o l i c e i n v e s t i g a t i o n .
Article 3
The summary p ro c e e d in g s s h a l l be pre p a re d by an o f f i c i a l o r employee o f t h e e d u c a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t i o n ,
d e s ig n a t e d by t h e d i r e c t o r . He s h a l l c a r r y o u t th e n e c e s s a r y i n v e s t i g a t i o n s and s h a l l c i t e t h e i n f r a c t o r
t o p r e s e n t h i s d e fen s e w i t h i n f o r t y e i g h t h o u rs . I f more th a n one i n f r a c t o r i s i n v o l v e d , a p e r i o d o f
n i n e t y s i x hours s h a l l be a p p l i c a b l e t o a l l .
Paragraph 1
The accused s h a l l be suspended from h i s f u n c t i o n s o r employment u n t i l th e t im e o f t h e v e r d i c t ,
o r i f he is a s t u d e n t , p r o h i b i t e d fr o m a t t e n d i n g c l a s s e s , upon r e q u e s t o f t h e h e a r in g o f f i c e r .
A r t i c 1e 6
T h is de cre e s h a l l become e f f e c t i v e upon the d a t e o f i t s p u b l i c a t i o n , r e v o k i n g a l l p r o v i s i o n s w h ic h
a re c o n t r a r y t o i t s te rm s .
MENSAJE
Number 186
J a n u a r y - F e b r u a r y , 1970
S an tia g o , C h ile
12
V II. THE STATE AND THE DOMINICAN ORDER
Among the Catholic clergymen s in g u la rly condemned by the m i l i t a r y regime as "subversives"
and "communists" are the prie s ts of the Dominican Order. Even p rio r to the m i l i t a r y coup of
1964, conservative forces in B r a z ilia n society had spent considerable sums of money to por­
tr a y the Dominicans' committment to social change and j u s t i c e as an anti-dem ocratic conspir­
acy. That o bje c tiv e seems at the heart of the most recent accusations of the regime against
the Order, even though the la te s t "angle" is c l e a r ly unique. In November, 1969, army per­
sonnel trapped and slaughtered Carlos Marighela, an o l d - l i n e communist party leader and pre­
sent-day g u e r il la c h ie f , in cold blood in one of the back a lle y s of Sao Paulo. Immediately
a f t e r , s to ries in the B ra z ilia n press, considered by r e l i a b l e sources to have been planted by
the m i l i t a r y , charged two Dominican p rie s ts with having "betrayed" Marighela. Behind the
slander was the government's attempt, f i r s t to persuade the public that the Dominican Order
was in tim a te ly linked to a wing of the B ra z ilia n communist movement, and second, to sow
doubts in the minds of non-Catholics about the trustworthiness and intentions of those Catholics
who are in the fo re fro n t of Vatican 11-inspired ecumenical movements.
Shortly a f t e r the shooting of Marighela, leading scholars, theologians and in t e l le c t u a l s of
the Dominican Order in France and Belgium addressed an evaluation of the present climate a f f e c t ­
ing church and s ta te in B ra zil to Maurice Cardinal Roy, President of the P o n tific a l Commission
on Justice and Peace. The te x t of the l e t t e r follows.
•k k -k -k -k

Your Eminence:

The world press has recently repeated c e rta in news items re f e r r in g to the im plic atio n of two of our
brothers of the Dominican Province of B ra zil in the events surrounding the death of the p o l i t i c a l leader
Marighela and the a rr e s t of several others. These reports would seem to be suspect on several counts:
1. they were issued by agencies wholly submissive to the censorship of the regime now in power; 2. t h e ir
accounts of the fa cts contain too many apparent falsehoods; 3. they combine alle g a tio n s concerning person­
al morals with p o l i t i c a l accusations, thus becoming in e ff e c t defamations of character; and 4 . they a l l too
obviously serve the in terests of the regime by encouraging a double d iv is io n : on the one hand, between
the various opposition movements, s p e c ia lly between C hristian and non-Christian groups, and, on the other
hand, between a " t e r r o r i s t " m in o rity , which is thus to be excluded, and a "moral" m a jo r ity , which is asked
to is o la te i t s e l f from the first-m en tio n ed group in a l l points of view.

While we w a it fo r fu r t h e r reports which are v e r i f i a b l e and v e r i f i e d , we wish to c a ll your a t t e n t io n ,

and through you th at of the Holy Father and Catholic opinion throughout the world, to the fa c t that the role
being played by Christians in movements opposed to the present regime is by no means limited to these Domi­
nicans. Members of the young l a i t y and Catholic Action groups, of both secular and re lig io u s c le rg y , not
to mention Protestant c i r c l e s , are engaging themselves in ever greater numbers. As fo r the Hierarchy,
whose le g itim a te caution is well known, even i t has f e l t obliged, as you know, to denounce the d i c t a t o r i a l
character of the present regime.

Under these conditions, we f i r m l y believe th at any e f f o r t aimed at disassociating the case of our
Dominican brothers from th at of the whole Church and its ro le in the present s it u a t io n in B ra zil would sim­
ply be to f a l l into the trap la id by those in power. Any such e f f o r t would create a precedent making i t
a l l the easier fo r a repressive p o lic y , whose e ff ic a c y lie s in it s s e le c t iv e character, to e lim ina te succes­
s iv e ly other sectors of the Church, including any Bishops who f a i l to agree with i t , and beginning with
the whole Dominican Province of B r a z i l . I t would thus succeed in the end in u t t e r l y n e u t r a liz in g the Gospel

As fo r the p a r t i c u l a r case of our arrested brothers, and q u ite apart from any reservations or disagree­
ments we might have with t h e i r methods, we knew th at t h e ir action was above a l l motivated by a s it u a t io n
which poses a v e r i t a b le defiance to the conscience of any b e lie v e r and to th at of any moral individual fo r
whom p o l i t i c s means the development of the whole man and of a l l men. They are among those who, in today's
B r a z i l , s t r i v e to help the people to speak up and who, fo r th at reason, are being reduced, one a f t e r another
to s ile n c e . For th is cause, we believe th at they have every rig h t to the name of C hristian and th at they
deserve respect fo r wanting to lead t h e i r lives according to t h e i r f a i t h . They th erefore have our f u l l
support.

That is why we declare ourselves determined to do a l l in our power to guarantee t h e i r honor and t h e ir
physical s a fe ty . Not to cast the lig h t to which we are e n t i t l e d on the accusation of "treason" made
against them, only favors the impression of an accidental death which people can a t t r i b u t e to the vengeance
of the opposition, a l l to the b e n e fit of the regime. For both these ends, we appeal here and now fo r the
assistance of lawyers and in te rn a tio n a l organizations, and we a l e r t public opinion, s ta r t in g with the p u b li­
cation of th is l e t t e r .

We ask you to do a l l you can from your side to counteract the maneuvers and pressures which may be
d irected against the Church under these conditions and to see to i t th at the problem imposed on the Chris­
tia n conscience by the present s it u a t io n in B ra zil is confronted and discussed as i t deserves at the highest
levels of the Church.

We close by r e c a llin g the example of Father Lebret. This man, to whom the en cyclical Populorum
Progressio, and hence your Commission, owes so much, had a p re d ile c tio n fo r B ra z il to which he devoted a
 13

« number of his works and much of his energies. He was also one of our bro thers. That, we th in k , is s u f f i ­
c ie n t reason to j u s t i f y our i n i t i a t i v e .

Please accept, Eminence, th is expression of our g ra titu d e fo r the reception you and the members of
your Commission may be good enough to give to our urgent p e t i t i o n . To i t we add the assurance of our pro­
found respect and confidence.

Pere J. KOPF, Pro vincial 0. P. de Toulouse Pere M. J. PERVIS 0. P.

Pere N. RETTENBACH, Pro vincial 0. P. de Paris Pere V. C0SMA0 0. P.
Pere 0. BELAUD, Provincial 0. P. de Lyon Pere M. BARTH 0. P.
Pere A. M. CARRE Prieur 0. P. Pere B. D. DUPUY 0. P.
Pere P. A. LIEGE. Prieur 0. P. Pere P. BLANQUART 0. P.
Pere M. D. CHENU 0. P. Pere Chr. REV0N 0. P.
Pere Y. C0NGAR 0. P.

Copies to: Monsieur le Cardinal VILL0T, Monseigneur GREMILLI0N, Rme Pere Aniceto HERNANDEZ.

(tra n s la te d from the French)

THE VATICAN RESPONSE ON TORTURE IN B R A ZIL

P o n tific a l Commission Justice and Peace

Statement of H. E. CARDINAL ROY

The P o n tific a l Commission Justice and Peace makes known the following Statement of its President,
H. E. Cardinal Maurice Roy:

In re ply to the l e t t e r with accompanying documents on cases of to rt u r e in B r a z i l , signed by a group

of seventy persons. Cardinal Roy has sent a l e t t e r in French to Mrs. Marcella G l i s e n t i , Secretary General
of the I t a l i a n Committee "Europa-Americana Latina".

In th is l e t t e r , dated January 20, Cardinal Roy w rite s th at the document was brought to his a tte n tio n
on January 8. In compliance with the s ig n a to rie s ' d e s ire , the Cardinal submitted the document to the Holy
Father who "with v i g i l a n t a tte n tio n is fo llowing the s it u a t io n of the Church in B r a z i l , on which He is con­
s ta n tly kept informed".

"The P o n tific a l Commission Justice and Peace" - His Eminence continues in his l e t t e r - "aims at
arousing in the People of God an ever increasing awareness of it s oblig atio ns to promote j u s t i c e , peace,
the development of the human person, and the progress of peoples".

"This is a se rv ic e ", w rite s the Cardinal, quoting the Holy Father, which the Commission has to render
" to help the Church to keep her eyes open, her heart s e n s itiv e and her hands ready to carry out the work of
c h a rit y i t is c alled to perform fo r the world, in order that every C h ris tia n conscience may learn, in the
name of the Lord, to examine i t s e l f , to r e f l e c t and to a c t" .

"However, i f i t is not up to the P o n tific a l Commission to pronounce a judgement on any p o l i t i c a l s it u a ­

t i o n " , continues His Eminence, "we cannot remain deaf to the appeals of those C hris tia n consciences who
j u s t l y react against the attacks and v io la tio n s and against the rights of the human person which take place
in many countries".

The Cardinal then stresses the fa c t t h a t , p u b lic ly and repeatedly, the B r a z ilia n Episcopate has c le a r ­
ly expressed its opinion, inspired by a very v iv id pastoral concern; he attaches to his l e t t e r the texts of
the statement of the Central Commission of the B ra z ilia n Conference of Bishops, dated 20 September 1969,
and of the communication of H.E. Cardinal Agnelo Rossi, Archbishop of Sao Paulo and President of the same
National Conference, of 10 November 1969. Cardinal Roy also mentions the Pastoral l e t t e r of Cardinal
Eugenio de Araujo Sales, Archbishop of Sao Salvador da Bahia, and Consultor of the P o n tific a l Commission,
who "denounces te rro ris m , tortures and executions without t r i a l s which have been v e r i f i e d in some regions
of the country".
Original Text: Ita lia n
 14 V III. APPEAL BY 38 PRIESTS
"Truly I say unto you, as you did i t to one of the least of these my brethern, you
did i t to me." Math. 25:4o

" ...w h a t e v e r v io la te s the i n t e g r i t y of the human person, such as m u tila tio n , torments,
i n f l i c t e d on body or mind, attempts to coerce the w i l l i t s e l f . . . a l l these things and
others of t h e i r l i k e are infamies indeed. They poison human s o c ie ty , but they do more
harm to those who p ra c tic e them than those who s u ffe r from the in ju r y . Moreover, they
are a supreme dishonor to the C re a to r." Vatican I I , The Church Today

E x c e lle n c ie s ,

When B ra zil signed the "Universal Declaration of Human Rights" i t promised to respect the d ig n ity of
the human person. From the moment in which I n s t i t u t i o n a l Act no. 5 constituted a th re a t to these very
r i g h t s , the National Conference of Bishops found i t s e l f obliged to warn the a u th o r itie s and the people of
th is f a c t in a d eclaratio n issued on February 18 by its Central Commission:

"The s it u a t io n which was in s t i t u t i o n a l iz e d la s t December opens the door to a i l manner of a r b i t r a r y

procedures, including the v io l a tio n of Fundamental Rights: the rig h t of defense, of le g itim a te expression
of thought, of information; the new s it u a t io n is a threat to human d ig n ity in both a physical and moral
sense".

The bishops were rig h t in taking th is p o s itio n , f o r i t was already c le a r in Belo Horizonte from the im
prisonment of p rie s ts and deacons of the parish of "Horto" th at a r b i t r a r y acts were no longer only a possi­
b i l i t y , but already a r e a l i t y .

In his homily of December 15, our archbishop. Dom Joao Resende Costa made the follow ing denunciation:
"They have been v i o l e n t l y beaten and to rtu r e d . I am making th is denunciation so that there sh a ll be e l i ­
minated once and fo r a l l from a l l in v e s tig a tio n s , those procedures which dishonor a l l those who practice
them and render the process of j u s t i c e suspect."

In so f a r as such procedures have not been suppressed, but have been, on the contrary, m u lt ip lie d ,
we, signatories of th is l e t t e r , p riests of the archdiocese of Belo Horizonte, c a lle d by the Master to the
m in is try of the Word and the Eucharist, fin d ourselves confronting a pain ful dilemma: I f , on the one hand,
we fe e l ourselves compelled by the duty th at is r i g h t f u l l y ours to denounce the a r b i t r a r y acts practiced in
our c i t y , we fe e l constrained, on the oth e r, to refuse to give too many d e ta ils about facts and persons,
so th at the l a t t e r shall not have to undergo s t i l l more s u ffe r in g .

Leaving aside a l l p o l i t i c a l considerations, but with f u l l knowledge of the case at hand, we denounce:
-Outrages against the human person, moral as well as physical.
- V io l a t io n of the Fundamental Rights of man perpetrated not simply on occasion but over and over again

We base our denunciation on the fo llowing f i r s t hand reports from p o l i t i c a l prisoners:

- v i o l e n t blows and to rtures practiced by the police as a means of obtaining confessions, accusations
against persons connected with the prisoner, or simply fo r reasons of vengeance.
-th e imprisonment of c i t i z e n s , without time li m i t and without any j u s t i f i c a t i o n whatsoever except fo r
a simple note mimeographed on newsprint, including the signature of the person responsible.
-an in calculab le number of a r b i t r a r y detentions of innocent persons simply on suspicion or fo r the
purpose of obtaining eventual information about others.
- j a i l i n g and detaining persons "incomunicado" without any j u s t i f i c a t i o n .
-breaking into homes during the night by police armed with submachineguns.
-absolute contempt fo r the rig h t of parents to know the whereabouts of t h e i r c h ild re n . Young people
are imprisoned without t h e i r parents being informed, nor are they to ld of the place of t h e i r c h il d 's de­
ten t i on.
-th e imprisonment and to rtu r e of r e la tiv e s as a means of pressuring prisoners to reveal information,
-violen ce done to women, they are stripped naked and beaten, e l e c t r i c shocks are applied to t h e ir
b re a s ts .

Since i t is impossible to publish the d e ta ile d l i s t of to rtures and the names of the tortured - the
l a t t e r fo r the s e c u rity of p o l i t i c a l prisoners, t h e ir fa m ilie s and ourselves - we want, however, to specify
the kinds and places of t o r t u r e , of which we have exact knowledge:
-v i o l e n t blows over the whole body (DOPS, DOS, CPOR and the Commissariat of Theft and Larceny)
-"Pau de a ra ra " , the prisoner is t i e d , then hung by the knees and by the hands (Commissariat of Theft
and Larceny)
- e l e c t r i c shocks to the most s e n s itiv e parts of the body including the g e nita l organs (Commissariat of
T h efts).
-Transistors tuned to several radio statio ns and placed, a t f u l l volume next to the ears of the
prisoners ( i n the Department of In vestig atio n and in the Commissariat of Thefts)
- v i o l e n t blows on the hands, with the aim of forcing out the f in g e r n a ils (Commissariat of Thefts)
-c i g a r e t t e burns
- i s o l a t i o n of prisoners in a c e l l , a v e r i t a b le p i t , f o r kO consecutive days ( a t the CPOR)
 15

- j a i l i n g the prisoner with handcuffs for 15 days, without removing them even to eat or sleep (a t CPOR)

In making th is denunciation, we are not washing our hands of the matter and considering our task done.

In accordance with our commitment to the gospels such as i t was made e x p l i c i t by Vatican II and re ­
newed a t M ed ellin , we believe th at a decla ratio n by the bishops would be necessary; a d e c la ra tio n which
would respond to the le g itim a te aspiratio ns of an important part of the People of God. This is even
more important since the Hierarchy c o n s titu te s , at the moment, the only social and moral force capable
of ra is in g it s voice and perhaps of making i t s e l f heard.

We are conscious of the g ra v ity of the accusations we have ju s t drawn up and we fe e l th at i t would
be dishonest on our part not to give them the guarantee of our sig nature. However, fo r reasons of personal
s e c u rity , we have l e f t our names o f f th is sheet and are sending them under separate cover to the President
of CELAM and_the Secretary General of the National Conference of Bishops of B ra zil (R espectively, Dorn
Avelar Brandão, bishop of Terzinha and Oom Aloiso Lorcheider-NDLR). R e s pe c tfu lly , a l e t t e r by 38 prie s ts
from Belo Horizonte, July 10, 1969.

IX. A CLASS ON TORTURE

The use of to r t u r e against the opponents of the present m i l i t a r y regime new appears to surpass a l l
other techniques of police in v e s tig a tio n and in q u iry . Torture has become so commonplace th at the three
armed services have organized courses.

One such class was held in October, 1969, at the headquarters of the S tate Police of Minas Gerais in
the c i t y of Belo Horizonte. The fo llowing excerpt about th at class was taken from a document c o l l e c t i v e l y
issued by twelve male p o l i t i c a l prisoners on December 19, 1969:

"On the_eighth of October (1969) a class in In terro gatio n was held at PE/State Police
headquarters/for a group of about a hundred (one hundred) m i l i t a r y men, the m a jority of
them sargents from the three branches of the armed forces. Just before the cla s s , Mauricio
(de Paiva) was given e l e c t r i c shocks 'to see i f the equipment was in good working o r d e r , 1
in the words of a p riv a te named Mendoça. At about k p.m. ju s t before the class was to begin,
the (follo w in g ten) prisoners were led up to the classroom where the session was already in
progress: Mauricio de Paiva, Angelo Pezzuti, Murilo P in to , Pedro Paulo Bretas, Afonso Celso
Lara, N ilo Sergio, J ú lio A. Antonio, Irany Campos, and an ex-MP from Guanabara and another
prisoner known as Zezinho. Immediately a f t e r , they were ordered to enter the room and
s t r i p . While L t. Haylton was showing slides and explaining each type of to r t u r e , its
c h a ra c te ris tic s and e f f e c t s , Sargents Andrade, O l i v e i r a , Rossoni and Rangel, together with
Corporals Mendoça and (an i l l e g i b l e name and the s o ld ie r Marcolino were to rt u r in g the prison­
ers in the presence of the hundred m i l i t a r y men in a ' l i v e ' demonstration of the various
to r t u r e methods in use. Mauricio suffered e l e c t r i c shocks, Bretas had a fin g e r put in irons,
M urilo was forced to stand on top of c u tting edges of t i n cans, Zezinho was hung from the
'p a r r o t 's p e rc h ', and the ex-MP was clubbed w hile N ilo Sergio had to hold his balance on
one foot while heavy weights were hung from his outstreached arms."

♦
16

THE LAWS OF REPRESSION

The Brazilian government has produced institutional acts and decrees by the dozens, in an attempt to
legitimize its situation. Under such legislation a ll rights are in r e a lity held by the armed forces,
publicly represented by a Genera I-President. The power to legislate and the functioning of the judicial
system are subordinated to the c r i t e r i a of the Executive, who can cancel the terms of o ffic e of Congressmen
and of Supreme Court judges without having to ju s t i f y his actions. The accused persons are not even in­
formed of the charges which led to th e ir punishment. The same kind of treatment is meted out to university
professors, members of the liberal professions, e t c . , and even to m ilita ry o f f i c ia l s themselves who are not
in agreement with the arbitrary acts which are being committed. The principal laws of repression are:
Institutional Act Number 5; the National Security Law; the Press Law; and the Law Pertaining to Schools
and Universities (Decree Number 477).

INSTITUTIONAL ACT NUMBER 5

This act, published on December 13, 1968, gives absolute powers to the President of the Republic
to decree a Congressional recess, to intervene in state government, to suspend summarily the rights of
c itize n s , including Supreme Court judges, to confiscate personal holdings, and with the Act the right
of Habeas Corpus is eliminated. This Act was annexed in its en tirety to the Constitution promulgated in
1967.
The principal a rtic le s follow:
A rtic le 1
The Constitution of January 24, 1967 is maintained, as well as the State Constitutions, with the modi­
fications which this Institutional Act contains.
A rtic le 2
The President of the Republic may decree the recess of the National Congress and State Legislative
Assemblies and the Municipal Councils by a Complementary Act, whether during a State of Siege or not; these
bodies shall reassume th eir functions only when convened by the President of the Republic.
Paragraph 1
When legislative bodies have been recessed by decree, the corresponding Executive Power is hereby
authorized to legislate in a ll matters pertaining to the Constitutions or to the Organic Law of the
Municipali t i e s .
A rtic le 3
The President of the Republic, in the national interest, may decree intervention in the States and
Municipalities, exempt from the limitations provided in the Constitution.
Paragraph 1
State and Municipal Interveners (Interventores) shall be named by the President of the Republic
and shall carry out a ll the functions and have a ll the powers which are attributed to the Governors
and Mayors, and shall have a ll the rights, salaries, and benefits determined by law.
Art icle 4
For the purpose of preserving the Revolution, the President of the Republic, upon the advice of the
National Security Council, and exempt from the limitations provided in the Constitution, shall have the
power to suspend the p o litic a l rights of any citize n for a period of ten years and to cancel a ll elected
terms of o ffic e , whether federal, state or municipal.
A rtic le 5
The suspension of p o litic a l rights based on this Act shall simultaneously signify:
1. Cancellation of the privilege of special legal status due to perogative of function;
2. Suspension of the right to vote or to be voted for in labor union elections;
3. Prohibition of a c tiv itie s and manifestations concerning subjects of a p o lit ic a l nature;
4. Application, when necessary, of the following security measures;
a. freedom under surveillance
b. prohibition against v is itin g certain specified places
c. fixed domicile
Paragraph 1
The Act which decrees the suspension of p o litic a l rights may f i x restrictions or prohibitions re­
lated to any other public or private rights.
Art icle 6
Constitutional or legal guarantees of lifetime duration, of s t a b il it y in o ffic e , as well as of the
exercise of functions for a fixed period of time are hereby suspended.
Paragraph 1
The President of the Republic, by means of decree, may dismiss, remove, r e t ir e or displace any
holders of the guarantees referred to in this a r t ic le , as well as employees of the self-governing
boards (autarchies), public enterprises or associations of mixed c a p ita l, and dismiss, transfer to
reserve status, or change the status of m ilita ry personnel or members of the M ilita ry Police, provid­
ing, when due, payments or benefits proportional to the time of service.
Paragraph 2
The provisions of this a r t ic le and its f i r s t paragraph apply also to the States, Municipalities,
Federal D is tr ic t and the t e r r it o r ie s .
A rtic le 7
The President of the Republic, in any of the cases covered by the Constitution, may decree a State
of Siege and prolong i t , fix in g the period of its duration.
Art icle 8
The President of the Republic, following investigation, may decree the confiscation of the possessions
_________________________________________________________________ (cont. nextpage
o f a l l t h o s e who have i l l i c i t l y become w e a l t h y in t h e e x e r c i s e o f t h e i r p u b l i c o f f i c e s o r f u n c t i o n s ,
i n c l u d i n g a u t a r c h i e s , p u b l i c e n t e r p r i s e s , o r a s s o c i a t i o n s o f mixed c a p i t a l , in a d d i t i o n t o t h e c o r r e s p o n d -
legai s a n c tio n s .
Paragraph 1
I f t h e l e g i t i m a c y o f th e a c q u i s i t i o n o f th e s e p o s s e s s io n s is p r o v e d , r e s t i t u t i o n s h a l l be made.
A r t i c l e 10
The g u a ra n t e e o f habeas c o rp u s is suspended in t h e cases o f p o l i t i c a l c r im e s a g a i n s t th e n a t i o n a l
s e c u r i t y , economic and s o c i a l o r d e r and t h e p o p u l a r economy.
A r t i c l e II
There s h a l l be no j u d i c i a l r e v i e w o f any measure c a r r i e d o u t i n a c c o rd w i t h t h i s I n s t i t u t i o n a l A c t
and i t s Complementary A c t s , n o r o f th e c o r r e s p o n d i n g r e s u l t s .
A r t i c l e 12
The p r e s e n t i n s t i t u t i o n a l A c t ta k e s e f f e c t on t h i s d a t e , r e v o k in g any p r o v i s i o n s t o th e c o n t r a r y .

Bras i l i a
December 13, 1968

COMPLEMENTARY ACT NUMBER 38

The f o l l o w i n g Complementary A c t Number 38, was p ro m u lg a te d s i m u l t a n e o u s l y w i t h I n s t i t u t i o n a l A c t
Number 5:
"The P r e s i d e n t o f t h e R e p u b l i c , u s in g th e powers c o n f e r r e d upon him by A r t i c l e 9 o f I n s t i t u t i o n a l A c t
Number 5 on December 13, 1968, has d e c id e d t o p ro m u lg a te th e f o l l o w i n g Complementary A c t :
A rtic le 1
In th e terms o f A r t i c l e 2 and i t s p a ra graphs o f I n s t i t u t i o n a l A c t Number 5 o f December 13, 1968, the
recess o f th e N a t i o n a l Congress is decre ed as o f t h i s d a t e .
A rt ic le 2
The p r e s e n t Complementary A c t ta k e s e f f e c t on t h i s d a t e , r e v o k in g a l l p r o v i s i o n s t o th e c o n t r a r y . "

Bras i l i a
December 13, 1968

HOW THE PRESENT BRAZILAN PRESIDENT WAS "ELECTED” .

1. The p r e s e n t P r e s i d e n t o f B r a z i l was chosen by c o n s u l t i n g 239 o f f i c e r s o f th e Armed F o r c e s .
2. The E l e c t o r a l C o lle g e was made up o f 118 Army g e n e r a l s , 60 A d m ir a l s and 61 A i r Force G e n e r a ls .
3. The o n l y e l i g i b l e c a n d id a t e s were th e " e l e c t o r s " t h e m s e lv e s , i . e . , t w o - , t h r e e - , o r f o u r - s t a r
genera 1s .
4. F or " h i e r a r c h i c a l " m o t i v e s , a t h r e e - s t a r g e n e ra l p r e f e r r e d by th e t r o o p s in th e N o r t h e a s t , th e most
u n d erd e v e lo pe d r e g io n o f B r a z i l , was e x c lu d e d from th e d i s p u t e f o r s u c c e s s io n .
5. The name chosen by t h e Army High Command, th e A d m i r a l t y C o u n c il o f t h e Navy, and th e M i l i t a r y Ae ro n au ­
t i c a l C o u n c il as c a p a b le o f p r e s e r v i n g u n i t y and r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e m i l i t a r y , was t h a t o f General
G a r r a s t a z ú M e d i c i , Commander o f th e T h i r d Army. A s y m b o lic l i s t o f t h r e e names, w h ic h in a d d i t i o n t o
General M e d ic i i n c lu d e d t h e Army C h i e f o f S t a f f and th e C h ie f o f S t a f f o f th e Armed F o r c e s , was o r ­
ga n iz e d .
6. Co n g re ss, whose membership had a l r e a d y undergone s u c c e s s iv e p u rg e s , was reopened in o r d e r t o r a t i f y ,
in t h e name o f n a t i o n a l s e c u r i t y , th e name s e l e c t e d by th e upper e c h e lo n s o f th e m i l i t a r y .
 AN APPEAL

The documents speak fo r themselves.

Tortu re, te r r o r and repression are the

order of the day; the p riv a tio n of funda­
mental human rights continues unabated;
the B ra z ilia n - - student, worker, i n t e l l e c ­
tual - - now jo ins the ranks of the world's
p o l i t i c a l refugees. In a l l , a c r i t i c a l
s it u a t io n now e x ists about which almost
nothing is known outside B r a z il .

For these reasons, scholars, w r it e r s ,

re lig io u s leaders, spokesmen fo r c i v i l l i ­
be rtie s as well as other fr ien ds of Brazil
met in New York in February 1970 and found­
ed the American Committee for Information
on Braz i 1. (A number of signatories to
the preamble of th is dossier are founders
and members of the Committee).

The Committee's aims are:

1. To obtain and encourage the obtention
of accurate knowledge and information about
the contemporary s it u a t io n in B r a z il ;

2. To disseminate and p u b lic iz e this

information to concerned indiv iduals and
organizations;

3. To promote assistance to the victims

of B ra z ilia n Repression;

k . To promote the implementation of the

p rin c iple s contained in the United Nations'
A D D IT IO N A L COPIES:
Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

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