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Credit, fake images
Although robberies decreased in Brazil, femicides and intentional homicides increased during the quarantine
A suitcase and other small bags were left on the bed. For the police, the messy room was an indication that Rosana * was leaving. But there was no time. Her husband broke into the house earlier, breaking the lock on the door.
The police report (BO), prepared by the Civil Police of Mato Grosso, relates that Rosana, 46, still tried to lock herself in her room. But the husband, with a shotgun, shot his wife, hitting her on the left side of the chest. He even sat on the bed, placing his hand over the socket. According to the neighbors, in the middle of the shooting, the suspect kept shouting: “Yes, Rosana, I already loved you …”
This femicide occurred in August of this year, during the 19 covid pandemic, in a city in the interior of Mato Grosso. The main suspect in the crime, according to the investigation, is the victim’s husband, who fled. Ironically, the murder occurred in the same month that the police, groups and human rights councils were campaigning to reduce domestic violence in a context of social isolation, in the so-called Agosto Lila.
In the first half of this year, femicides increased 2% in the country compared to the same period last year, according to the XIV Brazilian Public Safety Yearbook, published this Sunday. The report is prepared by the Brazilian Forum of Public Security from data provided by state departments.
From January to July, 648 women were murdered in Brazil in episodes classified as femicide, when the crime is motivated by domestic violence or gender discrimination.
For specialists and professionals working to combat this type of crime, social isolation has increased the number of crimes committed in the home, such as assaults, abuse and murder. This would have occurred due to greater proximity between victims and aggressors, as well as greater difficulty in filing complaints.
But the pandemic also influenced other types of crime, according to the report. Some of them, like thefts, have decreased considerably. Others, like homicides, began to grow again after a period of decline.
BBC News Brazil has listed some of these crimes. Check it out below.
1 – Femicide on the rise, domestic violence records on the decline
Credit, Brazil Agency
Protest in SP in 2016 asking to combat violence against women; Data shows that this violence has worsened in the country during the pandemic.
The data on domestic violence appear contradictory. While femicides increased by 2% and emergency calls increased by 3.8%, records of assaults in police stations decreased by 10% in the first half of this year.
“We must be very careful when analyzing these data, because they clearly indicate that there was an increase in domestic violence during the pandemic, but also an increase in underreporting,” explains Silvia Chakian, prosecutor in the area of domestic violence against women at the Ministry. . São Paulo public.
According to her, the increase in murders of women and emergency calls to the police indicate an intensification of the attacks. “Usually the victim or a witness calls the police when the situation turns violent. In the case of femicide, underreporting is more difficult, although in some places the police still have difficulties in classifying this crime, ”he says.
On the other hand, the drop in police complaints points to a greater difficulty for victims to formalize a complaint with the police, according to Samira Bueno, executive director of the Brazilian Public Security Forum. Before the pandemic, the events only occurred in person, at the police station. In some states, this continues.
“With the measures of social isolation, women in situations of violence were confined with the aggressors, without the possibility of leaving the house, and of circulating to go to a police station. Furthermore, the pandemic also affected the police, with numerous cases of officers on sick leave, causing a change in attendance at police stations, ”he says.
For Silvia Chakian, measures such as police reports prepared via the Internet facilitate complaints. “In the pandemic, the State of São Paulo opened the possibility of BO online, but this is not a reality throughout the country. People cannot report. It is necessary to strengthen these channels to make it easier for women in situations of violence to request it helps, “he says.
2 – The homicide grew again
Credit, fake images
After two years of decline, homicides have risen again in Brazil
In the last two years, the number of crimes against life in Brazil has decreased. Intentional violent deaths (MVI), for example, had fallen 17.7% last year, compared to 2018; In total, 47,773 people were killed in the country in 2019.
But now the scene has been reversed. This type of crime grew by 7.1% in the first six months of 2020, when 25,712 people were victims of intentional violent deaths, one death every 10 minutes.
In part, the growth was driven by Ceará, which posted a 96.6% increase over the previous year. At the beginning of the year, the State experienced a serious public security crisis, when military police went on strike for 13 days.
For Luiz Fábio Paiva, professor of Sociology and researcher at the Laboratory for Violence Studies of the Federal University of Ceará, the pandemic also influenced the production of homicides.
“In relation to Ceará, the pandemic occurred at a time when there was a reorganization of crime and a readjustment of the balance of forces between criminal factions. The pandemic changed the economic dynamics of illegal markets. The armed groups had to have to make adjustments in their actions, even to survive during the pandemic, which may have generated tensions and increased conflicts ”, he explains.
Samira Bueno agrees that the increase in homicides may have to do with changes caused by covid-19. “The pandemic has affected illicit businesses, such as drug trafficking, which needed to adapt. It is possible that the traffic had more difficulties to refuel, or there have been new disputes. Something may be happening in these markets, and it is likely that we only know what happened in the future ”, he explains.
On the other hand, deaths from police operations also increased – 6% in the first six months of the year, with 3,181 victims. Police officers also died more in this period: 110 new deaths, 19.6% more.
3 – Less theft and trade
Credit, PA media
Pedestrian robbery decreased 34% during the pandemic
Property crime fell sharply in the first half of this year.
Pedestrian robberies, for example, fell 34%, according to the Public Safety Yearbook. Vehicle thefts fell 22.5% and cargo thefts 25.7%.
Home burglaries fell 16%, while there were 18.8% fewer business robberies.
“The decline in property crime is clearly influenced by the pandemic. As businesses were closed and fewer people were walking the streets during the more restricted quarantine phase, criminals had fewer opportunities to act. The isolation made it difficult to carry out. performance of the people who work in this area ”, explains researcher Samira Bueno.
4 – The highway police seized more drugs
Another statistic possibly affected by the covid-19 pandemic was the seizure of illegal drugs.
The Federal Police (PF), which oversees airports, made fewer drug seizures, probably due to the decrease in the number of flights. However, the volume of marijuana seized almost doubled from the same period last year, reaching 217 tons. As for cocaine, there was a decrease of 2.3%.
The Federal Highway Police (PRF), which operates on roads and highways, greatly increased their apprehensions. In the first semester, the volume of cocaine seized by the PRF grew 56.7%, reaching 14 tons. The amount of marijuana trapped by the body increased by 128%, reaching 316 tons.
Credit, José Cruz / Agência Brasil
Drug seizures by the Federal Highway Police increased during the covid-19 pandemic
For Samira Bueno, a lower flow of cars and trucks on the roads may have influenced the increase in seizures.
“With social isolation and empty roads, the PRF managed to be more effective in the inspection. One hypothesis that we are also working on is that, with fewer flights, there was a decrease in traffic by this means and an increase in the transport of drugs by land route “. , he says.
For Marcelo Campos, professor at the UFGD and the Institute for Comparative Studies in Conflict Management, at the Fluminense Federal University, the increase in arrests does not mean that the use of illicit drugs has fallen.
“This increase in apprehensions has been going on for some time, but there is no correlation that more apprehension decreases consumption, as the war on drugs in the United States has shown. A horizon of change in drug policy and prohibitionism, such as It has been happening in various locations in the United States, it is what makes us hope (a decrease in violence), not an increase in apprehensions ”, he says.
* Fictitious name to preserve the identity of the victim and his family.
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