ASSISTANT SECRETARY PATTERSON'S VISIT TO RIO, MAY 16, 2007

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 RIO DE JANEIRO 000295 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR WHA/FO, WHA/BSC, WHA/PDA, INL NSC FOR FEARS TREASURY FOR JHOEK SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD USAID FOR LAC/AA PARIS FOR ECON - TOM WHITE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SNAR PGOV PREL KJUS BR SUBJECT: ASSISTANT SECRETARY PATTERSON'S VISIT TO RIO, MAY 16, 2007 REF: SAO PAULO 447 SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (U) INL A/S Anne Patterson completed her Brazil travel with a May 16 stop in Rio de Janeiro where she held discussions with representatives of civil society and local and state government to examine public security issues in and around Rio. She wrapped up the visit by meeting with Governor Sergio Cabral. The meetings produced a list of possible areas where the USG and local government could cooperate and exchange expertise. NAS is developing a response to the specific assistance requests and is coordinating with LEGATT to organize site visits for a proposed visit to the United States by a delegation of state security officials. End Summary. ROUNDTABLE WITH MUNICIPAL OFFICIALS -------------- ¶2. (U) A/S Patterson met with officials from the Rio de Janeiro municipal government to learn about the city's drug-related crime issues. The municipal officials present were: Col. Francisco Duran Borges, Municipal Secretary for the Prevention of Chemical Dependency; Carlos Moraes Antunes, Superintendent of the Municipal Guard; Lt. Col. Marcos Antonio, Military Commander and Mayor's Chief of Staff for Security; and Marilia Rocha, Municipal Sub-Secretary for Social Development. ¶3. (U) A/S Patterson raised her concern that increased cocaine flow from Bolivia could lead to an increase in drug addiction and further fuel organized crime in Rio, Sao Paulo and other major Brazilian cities. The participants welcomed U.S. efforts to go beyond the federal level and engage state and municipal officials. They explained that public security generally falls under the purview of the state government but Rio maintains an unarmed "Municipal Guard" of approximately 5,000 officers, whose mission is to patrol public areas and tourist attractions. Given those jurisdictional limits and the impunity of Rio's well-structured criminal organizations, Mayor Cesar Maia has chosen to focus on demand reduction as the city's primary strategy for fighting drug-related crime. Rio municipal secretariat for the prevention of chemical dependence, the 
only one of its kind in Brazil, has introduced anti-drug education at the primary school level and is also working with communities to do more outreach to at-risk youth. ¶4. (U) Officials also expressed concern over the rise of militias in some parts of the city. A Rio-specific phenomenon, the militias are generally formed by off-duty and retired law enforcement officers and charge a "protection" fee to community residents and businesses, usually with community support due to their success in expelling drug traffickers and delivering social programs. The political and law enforcement regime has ignored the militias, allowing them to strengthen and gain legitimacy. ¶5. (U) During the meeting, the city officials reiterated Mayor Maia's interest in the three main areas of possible collaboration that he outlined following Attorney General Gonzales' February 2007 visit to Rio: the desire to learn more about U.S. experiences and best practices with drug abuse and addiction prevention programs, information on community policing programs, and "Compstat" programs to provide interface between intelligence and police deployment. Stressing that the city would pay the costs of any such exchanges, they requested USG assistance in identifying appropriate U.S. counterparts and facilitating meetings. LUNCHEON WITH CIVIL SOCIETY REPRESENTATIVES -------------- ¶6. (SBU) A/S Patterson had lunch with key community leaders to discuss their views on the nature of the security problems in Rio. The participants were: Lilia Catao, drug counselor and president of the Brazilian Alcohol and Drug Association; Denise Frossard, Federal RIO DE JAN 00000295 002 OF 003 Deputy and former judge; Domicio Proenca Junior, political scientist; and Jairo Werner, professor at Federal Fluminense University. ¶7. (SBU) Discussing the nature of drug use and trafficking in Rio, the group agreed that drug activity in the favelas (slums),while currently a hot-button topic, was not truly significant. Proenca Junior asserted that the criminal gangs running the favelas could not be moving the volume of drugs necessary to fund their operations and that it was more likely that their primary funding came through more traditional protection schemes. In response to a question from A/S Patterson, Catao explained that, in her experience, Brazilian use patterns differed from those in the United States in that consumption was driven more by middle and upper class social users than by a smaller group of "heavy users" as is the case in the United States. The group then emphasized the ease with which consumers can place orders by phone with a credit card number and have the drugs delivered to their door within 30 minutes, as if ordering a pizza. They also lamented that hard data regarding the volume and quality of drugs in Brazil for consumption or transshipment was not available. Their explanation, unconfirmed by the Mission, is that Brazilian law blocks research into such subjects because the information could be used by the traffickers. ¶8. (SBU) The conversation then turned to a discussion of perceived shortcomings in the legal system, featuring the standard litany of complaints contributing to impunity: police and political corruption, lack of investigatory initiative and non-responsive courts. They also discussed the liberal treatment of convicts by the prison system, particularly the established practice of granting universal furloughs for Mother's Day and Christmas. Frossard, a former judge, explained that judges actually have the discretion to block the releases but do not due to an historic sympathy for the families of the imprisoned and a lack of political will to revoke privilege that has become a prima facie right. ON TO THE STATE -------------- ¶9. (U) A/S Patterson then met with Jose Beltrame, Secretary of Public Security for the state of Rio de Janeiro. Beltrame was joined by Ernesto Rubarth, Deputy Secretary for International Relations; Gilberto da Cruz Ribeiro, Commander of the Civil Police; Delfi Carlos Teixeira, Superintendent of the Federal Police; and Col. Ubiratan de Oliveira Angelo, Commander of the Military Police. ¶10. (SBU) Beltrame opened with a brief description of the broad security issues facing a major city and tourist destination and stressed the state's attention to the special demands in support of a high-profile international event such as the up-coming Pan American Games that Rio will host in July. He then moved into a more specific discussion of the challenges in dealing with drug trafficking and the militias. Focusing on the role of favelas in drug distribution, he explained that, unlike other cities where slums were often clustered together or on the outskirts of the city, Rio's were dispersed throughout the city, making them difficult if not impossible to quarantine. The physical structure of the favelas further complicates police action, first by restricting police entry to the neighborhood and then, because they are so densely populated with houses literally built on top of each other, it takes days for police to sweep an area. In regard to militias, Beltrame pointed to the lack of any Brazilian law specifically criminalizing militias and said that any action against them had to rely on proof of their involvement in some specific illegal activity. ¶11. (SBU) Beltrame then discussed areas where he was seeking USG cooperation and assistance. In addition to a list of software and surveillance/intelligence collection equipment he sought help in obtaining, which he provided directly to NAS Brasilia (SEPTEL), Beltrame requested USG assistance in building a system and culture in Brazil to facilitate data sharing and to enhance Rio's crisis management capability. He was interested in how to stand-up new units and manage issues of intercommunication and especially eager to send a team to the U.S. prior to July's Pan American games to learn more about intelligence sharing. Embassy Legatt offered to help coordinate a trip. RIO DE JAN 00000295 003 OF 003 MEETING WITH GOVERNOR -------------- ¶12. (SBU) A/S Patterson concluded her Rio stop by meeting Governor Sergio Cabral. After the governor referred to the requests made by Beltrame earlier that day, A/S Patterson assured him that the USG wanted to work cooperatively with state officials and would consider the requests in designing future USG assistance. Likewise, Embassy Legatt affirmed his commitment to organize a visit for the state's delegation. Cabral, for his part, expressed appreciation for USG technical assistance in preparing for the Pan Am Games. Cabral expressed many of the same concerns regarding impunity that had been raised earlier in the day was forthcoming in his belief that drug use in Rio cut across class lines, although the nature of the use differed. Cabral, a father of five, seemed somewhat disheartened by the magnitude the drug problem, but A/S Patterson pointed to the success in the U.S. of prison treatment programs and of DARE. ¶13. (U) Before departing Rio, A/S Patterson held a brief press conference to discuss the cooperative nature of her meetings and stressed USG efforts to work as a partner in the region. She then did a taped interview for the popular Bom Dia Brasil (Good Morning Brazil) television program, which was well received. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶14. (SBU) The day's series of meetings were useful in strengthening local understanding of the USG commitment to work cooperatively on security and counter narcotics issues, a particularly important issue given Brazil's borders with Colombia, Peru, Bolivia and Paraguay. It was also informative to hear local opinions of the role of drug trafficking in the favelas and the nature of domestic drug use. ¶15. (U) This cable was coordinated with Embassy Brasilia and ConGen Sao Paulo, and cleared by Ambassador Sobel. MARTINEZ