Brasília - The Minister of Justice, Márcio Thomaz Bastos, said that the government is willing to make it as easy as possible for people to disarm. "We shall start a snowball rolling that will never stop. As long as there are arms in the country, we shall go after them," he affirmed. Bastos commemorated the total of 80 thousand weapons turned in in less than three months.
The expectation now is to round up 300 thousand weapons by December, the deadline for regularizing or turning in unregistered arms. The Minister also said that the National Congress was sent a bill requesting US$ 6.8 million (R$ 20 million) in supplementary funds. The original budget was US$ 3.4 million (R$ 10 million).
A toll free telephone number was set up to remove any doubts the population may have about turning in, bearing, and regularizing arms. The number (0800-729-0038) will be announced in a publicity campaign launched yesterday (2) by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The campaign consists of four 30-second clips for television, radio appeals, and posters calling for Brazilians to hand over their weapons. Broadcasts of the commercials by radio and television stations will be free and voluntary.
Bastos also announced that the governors will receive visits asking them to support the campaign. "We shall request them to open doors and facilitate matters. What is important is to unleash all the forces that want to bring in arms in order to make this campaign as comprehensive as possible," he said. "I believe we have an adequate infrastructure to make this campaign successful, because it will be bad for crime and good for Brazil," he added.
The Minister remarked that the disarmament campaign represents an important step in the fight against violence and organized crime. "There are already early signs that in some of the places where the campaign was conducted with vigor, there has been a statistical reduction in the number of crimes involving firearms," he pointed out.
Data from the Ministry of Justice demonstrate that around 100 Brazilians die each day as a result of gunshot wounds. Most of the victims are males in the 15-34 age bracket.
Agência Brasil
Reporter: Luciana Vasconcelos
Translator: David Silberstein
09/03/2004
