Brasília, May 3, 2004 (Agência Brasil) - The Brazilian government does not want just to create more prison openings; it wants to promote the increased application of alternative sentences, as determined in Article 43 of the Brazilian Penal Code. This information comes from the director of the National Prison Department (Depen), Clayton Nunes. He recognizes, however, that the government is lax in the supervision of these sentences, which are applied in cases of sentences up to four years, for crimes committed by first-time offenders, without violence or serious menace.
An international conference will be held in Brasília, from May 4-6, to debate the effectiveness of the sentences and procedures and make members of the legal system and the population more aware of the importance of using alternative sentences. Among the topics that will be examined are the effectiveness of this type of penalty, the myth of impunity, effective monitoring and control mechanisms, and the responsibility of the State and civil society for implementing the model.
Other countries' experiences in the application of alternative sentences will be presented at the Conference. One of these countries is England, where 80% of criminal cases are resolved by these measures and the reoccurence of crime is low.
The United Nations (UN) guidelines on prevention and treatment suggest depriving people of their freedom only when serious crimes are committed. Alternative sentences are recommended for other offenses.
The alternative sentence most frequently assigned by the judicial system is the performance of community service. Other forms are: the temporary loss of rights; weekend limitations; the loss of possessions and monetary values; and monetary contributions, as in the case of paying for basic food baskets.
In the Federal District, where alternative sentences have been applied, the results are satisfactory, according to Judge Gilmar Tadeu Soriano, from the Alternative Sentences Center. He said that fewer than 2% of those who were judged guilty and served their sentences through the performance of services returned to commit other crimes. "This leads us to conclude, in a practical manner, that alternative sentencing is effective," he affirmed. There are currently 1,300 lawbreakers serving alternative sentences in one of the 270 affiliated institutions. Of these, 77% provide services, while 23% pay a monetary penalty.
The judge said that only 5% of the offenders assigned alternative sentences disobyed the decision. "But even in these instances of non-compliance, following an admonitory hearing, they resumed carrying out their sentences, and the level of non-compliance is very low," he explained. In his view, this type of penalty is of a nature that allows the offender to be resocialized more readily. "He suffers the penalty when he has to perform the service, and he feels reintegrated into society," he said.
Judge Soriano also points out that the performance of a service eliminates the cost of imprisonment. "Prison costs approximately US$ 347.00 (R$ 1,000.00) per prisoner. Whereas the penalty of performing a service involves practically no cost to the government, because it functions through the affiliated institutions," he explained.
THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATION
Clayton Nunes rules out the idea that the federal government intends to delegate responsibility for administering the prison system to third parties, but he assures that states can hire service providers to carry out some activities.
The government's prison policy foresees the construction of five federal prisons to dismantle the operations of prisoners who are considered very dangerous. The country's first federal prison, which will be ready by the end of 2005, in Campo Grande (MS), will hold 200 prisoners. They will be kept in individual cells under a strict security scheme. The other prisons will be built in the states of Paraná, Roraima, and Tocantins. The location of the fifth unit has not yet been determined.
Translator: David Silberstein
