Priscilla Mazenotti and Iolando Lourenço Reporters Agência Brasil

Brasilia - Reactions to the Supreme Court ruling on the Ficha Limpa law were varied.
The decision that the Ficha Limpa law is valid only for the elections beginning in 2012 (when mayors and city councilpersons will be elected) got a mixed reaction in the Chamber of Deputies.

The leader of the government, deputy Cândido Vaccarezza (PT-SP) said the court made the right decision. “As the popular saying goes, Supreme Court decisions are not to be disputed, they are to be obeyed. In this case, the court got it right. The law cannot be retroactive when it is detrimental to the accused.”

However, the leader of the PPS, Rubens Bueno (PR), criticized the ruling pointing out that it was decided by one vote, that of the newest justice, Luiz Fux. “The new Supreme Court judge frustrated expectations in all of society. A very popular law has been turned to dust. It is a blow to many who fought to improve the quality of politics in this country,” he declared.

Another person who lamented the Supreme Court decision was the president of the Bar Association (“OAB”), Ophir Cavalcante. But he was optimistic about the future. “This is no time to cry over spilled milk. We don’t like it, but it is a Supreme Court ruling. We just have to carry on and look ahead to the future,” he said. According to Cavalcante, with the Ficha Limpa law the political reform has begun. “Civil society has taken the first step. The demand for a more ethical political process is crystal clear.”

Allen Bennett - translator/editor The News in English - content modified
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