GENEVA (18 November 2011) – The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay hailed Friday’s signing into law by the President of Brazil of a long-awaited bill establishing a National Truth Commission, describing it as an important step towards unravelling the truth about past human rights violations.

“This development shows Brazil’s commitment to addressing human rights at home, as well as elsewhere in the world,” Pillay said. “It is an essential and welcome first step towards healing the country’s wounds and clarifying past wrongs.”

During an official mission to Brazil in 2009, Pillay drew attention to the need for Brazil to initiate such a Commission, which has been contemplated for many years. It was provided for in the country´s Third National Human Rights Programme in 2010, but only recently passed the final legislative hurdles in Parliament.

The Commission that is being established should seek to promote the right to truth and public knowledge and understanding of human rights violations that took place during 42 years’ of political repression from 1946 to1988. The Law establishing the Commission was signed on Friday by President Dilma Rousseff, who was herself a victim of the types of violation the Commission will investigate.

At the same time, President Rousseff promulgated a Law for Public Access to Information, which aims in part to enable the Truth Commission to bring facts and information into the public arena. The High Commissioner encouraged Brazil to take additional measures to facilitate the prosecution of those believed responsible for past human rights violations, including as a result of the work of the Commission. Such measures should include enacting new legislation to abrogate the 1979 Amnesty Law or declaring it inapplicable because it impedes the investigation and ending of impunity for serious human rights violations, in contravention of international human rights law.

The Commission will consist of seven members with a two-year mandate to investigate violations. The UN human rights office hopes that this will lay the groundwork for future accountability for those responsible for killings, torture, forced disappearances and other human rights atrocities. A total of nearly five hundred people are said to have either been killed or forcibly disappeared under Brazilian military rule.

“They and their families have been seeking redress for the violations they suffered for more than four decades, and they have a right to see justice being done,” Pillay said. “In addition to highlighting the truth about particular incidents, such commissions investigate the patterns of violations in the past, their causes and consequences,” she added.

“Ultimately, the commission's work, including bringing victims’ often searing testimonies into the open, should help Brazilians understand and recognize their own history which has up until now often been disputed or denied,” the High Commissioner said. “Truth commissions also seek to prevent further abuses, making specific recommendations on institutional reform and public policy.”

Pillay noted that the UN human rights office has gathered considerable experience over the years in supporting States in their efforts to pursue effective transitional justice measures. “Experience has frequently shown that societies cannot fully enjoy sustainable development and reconciliation without addressing past human rights abuses,” she said. “As a rising political and economic power, Brazil´s clear acknowledgment of this is a very important development both in the region and at the global level.”

For more information and media requests, please contact:

In Geneva:
Rupert Colville: +41 22 917 9767 / rcolville@ohchr.org
Xabier Celaya: +41 79 444 7578 / xcelaya@ohchr.org

OHCHR Regional Office for South America, Santiago de Chile:
Jennifer Ross: +562 321 7750 / jross@ohchr.org

UN Human Rights, country page – Brazil: http://www.ohchr.org/en/countries/brazil

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