Rio de Janeiro

In Brazil, the National Voluntary Firearms Handover campaign is coming to an end, after having recovered 248,713 weapons in six months, way above the original target of 80,000 set by the Government. Research concluded by Viva Rio, one of the most instrumental NGOs entrusted by the Ministry of Justice with the implementation of the campaign, reveals that 90% of the weapons collected were in good condition, 74% were handguns and only 11% were handed over with their licenses. The buy-back program offers from US$30 to US$ 100 for a gun, under a policy of “no questions asked” about the origins of the weapon. With almost 40,000 firearm-related death per year, Brazil is facing rising violence levels, generated in most part by the explosive combination of drug trafficking and proliferation of small arms.

The success of the campaign was such that President Lula decided to extend it for another six months. This decision will strengthen the gun control movement in Brazil and will feed the public debate which will take place around the national referendum for the prohibition of commercial sales of weapons for civilians, due to take place in October 2005.

Both the handover campaign and the referendum are part of a new gun control law, the Disarmament Statute, voted by Brazilian Congress a year ago. This law is the toughest of its kind in the Americas: it terminates the right for civilians to carry a gun; raises the minimum legal age to buy a gun from 21 to 25; extends jail sentences to up to 12 years in case of illicit trafficking of restricted-use weapons; and introduces the marking not only of weapons produced by the Brazilian industry but also of the ammunition, in order to facilitate tracing.

In order to celebrate the closure of the campaign’s first phase, UNESCO together with Viva Rio created the Human Security Award for the governors of the states where the highest number of weapons had been collected, led by São Paulo (76,834) and Rio de Janeiro (26,444). The awards were delivered by victims of firearms, such as Camila Lima, who became paraplegic after being hit by a stray bullet at the age of 12.

One of the highest expectations of the second phase of the campaign is the involvement of religious orders in the country. This kind of support, so far limited to Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, is considered to be crucial for the expansion of the campaign, since churches offer a viable alternative to the many people who, in spite of the amnesty granted by the law, are still reluctant to hand over their guns in police stations.

Graph showing the number of weapons collected, by States (July 15 to December 16, 2004):
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Contact:
Josephine Bourgois
vivario@vivario.org.br