On the last Sunday of August (25/08), the team of Rights and Justice System from ISER met, once again, with the members of the third cycle of Warriors for Decarceration: legal-political training in the socio-educational system and the fight for deincarceration, in Benfica, North Zone of Rio de Janeiro. The training is carried out by ISER in partnership with the Association of Mothers and Friends of Children and Adolescents at Risk (AMAR). The meeting was attended by 20 family members of adolescents interned in the socio-educational system and 03 survivors of the internment.
In a dynamic and welcoming conversation circle, participants and facilitators recalled topics discussed in previous meetings, such as police approach, remission, presentation hearing, Public Defender's Office and Public Prosecutor's Office. When asked about their experiences, family members said they felt they were in a safe space to share how their rights are often violated. The participant with the pseudonym Rosângela reported what her son's presentation hearing was like. “When I first met the prosecutor, I realized that he had no intention of helping, listening or understanding the situation. From the beginning, his intention was always to intern him [in the socio-educational system]. I had to hear that I should have raised my son better. For single mothers, we end up carrying this feeling of guilt.”, he says.
The presentation hearing is the first contact the adolescent has with the judge and is also the judge's opportunity to hear the legal guardian. It is at this time that the judge analyzes the possibility of offering judicial remission with or without socio-educational measures. During the hearing, the judge asks questions about the adolescent's life and the events that occurred. If he or she wishes, It is the teenager's right to remain silent at this stage.
The Warriors for Decarceration aims to invite participants to a critical thinking about the distance between rights guaranteed to adolescents and their families in legislation and the daily practice of the State, and has become a safe environment for sharing, exchanging knowledge and learning. The training reinforces the importance of access to information to be aware of one's rights. This is the case of the group member with the pseudonym Fátima, who shares how the lack of information made her remain silent. “I had no voice and tried to stay quiet for fear of saying something that could be harmful. But today I have knowledge and I always stand up for my rights. Ever since I got the ECA handbook here, I have been following it everywhere.”, reports. All participants in the training received an updated Statute of Children and Adolescents, which deals with the guarantee of rights of children and adolescents in Brazil.
During the meeting, the facilitation team proposed a group dynamic to discuss the socio-educational measures that can be applied by the judge to the adolescent. The objective is to discuss the understandings and realities experienced with socio-educational measures and, from there, discuss the rights violated by the State and individual and collective resistance strategies. In the shared reports, several difficulties were identified in the execution of these measures with protection of the rights of children and adolescents. Késsia Gomes, a researcher in the area of Rights and the Justice System, states that the lack of preparation of professionals in the system that guarantees the rights of children and adolescents is a common factor among the families' reports.
As a result of the dynamics, the researcher brought up how we can think of ways to address each challenge presented. “We can learn from this dialogue about how the judge and prosecutor have the option of guaranteeing other measures, such as open detention, supervised release and community service. However, even at the police station, people are already thinking about deprivation of liberty, but it is important to be aware of other socio-educational measures and ask about other options. We need to develop dialogue strategies with the public defender's office, for example, so that these other open detention measures can be implemented.”, emphasizes Késsia.
According to the ECA and information systematized in booklets from the Public Defender's Office of the State of Rio de Janeiro for family members of adolescents in socio-educational settings, measures in open environments include: warning, obligation to repair damage, The community service provision (CSP) and the supervised freedom (LA). Community service is provided in charitable institutions, hospitals, schools and other similar establishments and cannot exceed six months. The maximum working hours are eight hours per week, on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, or on weekdays, so as not to interfere with school attendance or normal work hours. Supervised freedom may be applied directly, at the end of the process, or as a way of replacing a measure of internment or semi-liberty. It may also be applied in conjunction with community service. In this case, the adolescent will also provide service in an institution indicated in the decision, for a certain number of hours during the week.
The ISER Rights team, in partnership with the AMAR team, conducts the training with the families. The meeting also includes contributions from Nina Barrouin, Erivelto Melchiades and Eliene Vieira – who were already part of the ISER Rights and Justice System team and collaborated in the construction of Warriors for Decarceration, and consultants Patrícia Oliveira and Valéria Gomes, references in the fight against internment and for the rights of children and adolescents in the State of Rio de Janeiro.
More than just training, Warriors for Decarceration is a welcoming and empowering space that involves connection and open listening. In addition to the lessons learned, participants find the courage to share and remember the pain caused by the violation of their rights. You need to have empathy and sensitivity to listen to so many stories that are crossed by various forms of violence and find hope to collectively build a more just and generous society. Even with all the challenges and inequalities presented, the Warriors for Decarceration manages to rescue the meaning of the word humanity.
Once you know about Warriors for Decarceration, you will never forget!