Brasília, April 13 2021:Right wing President Jair Bolsonaro issued decrees relaxing the country’s arms policy in February this year but a Judge suspended some parts of the proposed laws, one of which proposed an increase in the maximum allowed number of firearms a citizen can own and also those for security agents.
The Judge, Rosa Weber also removed a sections authorizing people to carry two guns in public instead of one and also allowing citizens to purchase unlimited ammunition not allowed before. Justice Rosa Weber’s decision regarding the decrees will be analyzed by the plenary of the court, along with other appeals filed by multiple groups against the right-wing president’s arms policy.
In her decision she wrote there is a direct and unequivocal correlation between the number of firearms people can carry and the level of organized crime among militias and criminals in general, through robberies or clandestine trade, increasing patrimonial crimes, violent crimes and homicides.
Himself a former army captain, Bolsonaro, is an outspoken gun-rights advocate who regularly posts pictures on social media of himself at the shooting range. One of his campaign slogans was a promise to arm “good people” to fight crime in Brazil, and regularly flashes his signature finger gun gesture to illustrate.
Critics of Bolsonaro’s philosophy have been sharply critical and advocate gun control. The President has now issued over 30 decrees that have led to an increase in gun circulation since last year. Weber’s decision was hailed as a “great victory for Brazilian society” by Ilona Szabo, president of the Igarape Institute, which specializes in security and development issues.
Stay tuned to BaaghiTV for latest news and Updates!
