BRAZILIAN GOVERNMENT REQUESTS FEDERALIZATION OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L BRASILIA 000606

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/07/2015
TAGS: PGOV CASC PHUM PREL SOCI KCRM BR TIP
SUBJECT: BRAZILIAN GOVERNMENT REQUESTS FEDERALIZATION OF
NUN'S MURDER CASE

REF: A. BRASILIA 0581

B. BRASILIA 532

C. BRASILIA 437

D. BRASILIA 369

Classified By: POLITICAL OFFICER BISOLA OJIKUTU. REASON: 1.4 (D)

1) (U) Summary. On March 4, Brazilian Prosecutor General
Claudio Fonteles submitted a formal request for
federalization of the investigation and prosecution of the
Dorothy Stang murder case to the Brazilian Supreme Court
(STJ) and is currently awaiting a response. The Association
of Brazilian Judges (AMB) released an official statement on
March 6 against the federalization request. On March 3,
David Stang, brother of Dorothy Stang, met with Justice
Minister Bastos to express his strong position in favor of
federalizing his sister's murder case. End Summary.

Federalization Request Submitted to STJ
--------------
2) (U) On March 4, Brazil's Prosecutor General Claudio
Fonteles submitted a formal request to the Supreme Court to
federalize the Stang murder case, i.e. take it over from Para
state authorities. (Note: Two months ago, the GOB passed a
law that allows the Federal Prosecutor to take over major
human rights cases from states.) After analyzing state
documents on the investigation, Fonteles concluded that state
authorities were negligent in protecting potential victims,
reducing violence in the region, and prosecuting the case.
Fonteles further stated that Para state police have not been
impartial and federalization is necessary to insure that the
GOB honors international human rights agreements. The STJ
has not yet released a ruling.

3) (U) The Association of Brazilian Judges (AMB) released a
press statement to express their "full disagreement" with
Fonteles' request because the AMB asserted that the state
police "efficiently responded to the demands of the case and
followed the necessary steps to investigate and punish those
responsible." The group pointed out that homicide
prosecutions are a state-level responsibility in Brazil, and
federalizing the case would be in conflict with Brazilian
judicial norms.

Stang/Bastos Meeting
--------------
4) (C) On March 3, David Stang, brother of murdered U.S.
citizen nun Dorothy Stang, met with Justice Minister Marcio
Bastos to press for federalizing his sister's murder case.
Stang has been critical of state authorities for failing to
protect his sister and believes that corruption and collusion
with lumber and land interests in the state's judiciary would
jeopardize chances for a fair and effective trial in Para
state. Our contacts at Ministry of Justice reported that
Bastos expressed his confidence in the state judge in charge
of the murder case but said that GOB authorities would
consider federalization when investigations have concluded.

5) (C) On March 7, Stang spoke to the Mission Consul General
about his meeting with Bastos and said that the meeting "went
well." Stang said he is convinced that Bastos wants justice,
knows Para is corrupt, and believes the federal government
should handle the case. Stang also told the CG that Bastos is
"a very compassionate man (who) very much wants to federalize
. . . but (faces) a complicated situation." Stang noted that
he was pleased to learn that Fonteles submitted a
federalization request to the STJ.

Comment:
--------------
6) (C) It appears that Bastos is open to federalizing the
case but may be unable to admit this publicly due to
diverging opinions within Brazil's judicial system (per
paragraph 3). Despite the progress that the Para state
police and judicial system have made in investigating the
Stang murder and the AMB's stance against federalization,
post continues to believe that the case should be federalized
to ensure successful investigation and prosecution.

DANILOVICH