Brazil
26.02.03
Urgent Interventions
Brazil: closure of Sao Paolo's Police Station No. 85
Case BRA 050203.1
Update on Case BRA 050203
Ill-treatment / Torture / Impunity
Geneva, February 26th, 2003
The International Secretariat of OMCT has received new information concerning the following situation in Brazil.
New Information
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by a reliable source of the closure of the 85th Police Station in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The very poor conditions of detention and the violent treatment given to persons being detained within this police station was the subject of the previous appeal on February 5th, 2003.
Remarks
OMCT wishes to thank all of the individuals and organizations that have taking action as a response to the urgent appeal and have written to the Brazilian authorities on behalf of the victims in question. It is believed that your letters played a significant role in the closure of the 85th Police Station. No further action is currently required on your part concerning this case, but OMCT will continue to closely monitor the situation.
Brief reminder of the situation
According to the information received, on the 19th of January 2003 a shoot out followed a failed rebellion in police station no. 85. As a result a detainee was shot in the leg, a guard was wounded and an investigator was killed. The wounded detainee, Cleiton Barreto Pinheiros, was taken to the Grajau hospital where he waited for half an hour before receiving medical attention. In front of the two doctors who attended him, the policemen reportedly poured iodine and other chemicals on an open fracture to his right leg. The doctors witnessed this but reportedly did not intervene. Following x-rays having been taken of his wounded leg a cast was put on to immobilize it, but no antibiotic was prescribed. He was temporarily returned to police station no. 85 where, according to testimonies from other detainees, the police's Special Operations Group stormed the establishment arbitrarily firing shots and seizing the personal effects of the detainees while violently kicking them and beating them with clubs. Cleiton Barreto Pinheiros was also brutally beaten despite his already wounded leg and being in no condition to walk.
According to the information received, on January 22nd, human rights organisation ACAT-Brazil, the Prison Ministry and the Commission on Human Rights of the Order of Lawyers of Brazil visited police station no. 85 and have since reported about the very poor conditions under which the detainees were living. They reportedly bore signs of illness, bruising and other ailments, were not allowed to receive visitors and were routinely punished for the events that took place on the 19th of January 2003. The facility was reportedly holding 137 prisoners despite its 20-person capacity. There was no ventilation or sunlight and there was a lack of water, clothing, medication and medical assistance. Detainee Tomas Martins Pereira has HIV, Cleiton Rogerio Tavares has tuberculosis and Jesus Cristino Machado is diabetic, but none were receiving medical attention. Prior to the police station’s closure, 48 detainees had urgently requested to be transferred to a better facility.
Geneva, February 26th, 2003
Update on Case BRA 050203
Ill-treatment / Torture / Impunity
Geneva, February 26th, 2003
The International Secretariat of OMCT has received new information concerning the following situation in Brazil.
New Information
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by a reliable source of the closure of the 85th Police Station in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The very poor conditions of detention and the violent treatment given to persons being detained within this police station was the subject of the previous appeal on February 5th, 2003.
Remarks
OMCT wishes to thank all of the individuals and organizations that have taking action as a response to the urgent appeal and have written to the Brazilian authorities on behalf of the victims in question. It is believed that your letters played a significant role in the closure of the 85th Police Station. No further action is currently required on your part concerning this case, but OMCT will continue to closely monitor the situation.
Brief reminder of the situation
According to the information received, on the 19th of January 2003 a shoot out followed a failed rebellion in police station no. 85. As a result a detainee was shot in the leg, a guard was wounded and an investigator was killed. The wounded detainee, Cleiton Barreto Pinheiros, was taken to the Grajau hospital where he waited for half an hour before receiving medical attention. In front of the two doctors who attended him, the policemen reportedly poured iodine and other chemicals on an open fracture to his right leg. The doctors witnessed this but reportedly did not intervene. Following x-rays having been taken of his wounded leg a cast was put on to immobilize it, but no antibiotic was prescribed. He was temporarily returned to police station no. 85 where, according to testimonies from other detainees, the police's Special Operations Group stormed the establishment arbitrarily firing shots and seizing the personal effects of the detainees while violently kicking them and beating them with clubs. Cleiton Barreto Pinheiros was also brutally beaten despite his already wounded leg and being in no condition to walk.
According to the information received, on January 22nd, human rights organisation ACAT-Brazil, the Prison Ministry and the Commission on Human Rights of the Order of Lawyers of Brazil visited police station no. 85 and have since reported about the very poor conditions under which the detainees were living. They reportedly bore signs of illness, bruising and other ailments, were not allowed to receive visitors and were routinely punished for the events that took place on the 19th of January 2003. The facility was reportedly holding 137 prisoners despite its 20-person capacity. There was no ventilation or sunlight and there was a lack of water, clothing, medication and medical assistance. Detainee Tomas Martins Pereira has HIV, Cleiton Rogerio Tavares has tuberculosis and Jesus Cristino Machado is diabetic, but none were receiving medical attention. Prior to the police station’s closure, 48 detainees had urgently requested to be transferred to a better facility.
Geneva, February 26th, 2003