Brasília, July 24, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - The government wants to integrate the Ministry of Defense's weapons registry with the Ministry of Justice's. This step will be taken as soon as the Disarmament Statute, approved yesterday in the Senate and now under scrutiny in the Chamber of Deputies, is issued. This information comes from the Minister of Justice, Márcio Thomaz Bastos.

The Minister said that he is satisfied with the project approved in the Senate. "It is basically what we proposed." But he disagrees with the article dealing with the bearing of toy guns, punishing whoever uses a toy gun to practice a crime with three years of prison. "It is an excessive punishment," in his view.

According to the Minister, the Statute constitutes the first step in combatting violence in the country, but it is not the only way to put an end to crime. He believes that what is needed is a series of actions, such as judicial reform, reorganization of the prison system, and reorganization of the police forces. "We can't fool ourselves into believing that, once the Statute is enacted, violence is ended. That's not right. The law depends to a great extent on how it is implemented," he said.

The proposal approved by the Senators limits the bearing of firearms to police agencies, agents of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency, and security firms. The Federal Police can extend the authorization to professionals whose activities place them at risk. Licenses to bear arms will have to be renewed within 90 days after the law goes into effect.

The Statute raises the minimum age for purchasing weapons from 21 to 25, and even then, only after passing technical and psychological examinations. The Statute also establishes conditions for selling weapons and imposes severe penalties on illegal weapons bearing. Another article stipulates holding a plebiscite in 2005 for the population to vote on whether or not to prohibit the sale of firearms in Brazil.

Data show that only 5% of the crimes committed in Brazil involve registered weapons, whereas 95% are practiced with unregistered and illegal weapons. "It is a proven fact that someone who goes out on the street armed commits crimes he would not otherwise commit and gets involved in situations in which he would not otherwise get involved," the Minister affirmed. (DAS)