The Minister of Justice, Flávio Dino, landed, this Sunday night (19), in Natal, capital of Rio Grande do Norte, a state that has been facing a public security crisis since last Tuesday (14). Upon arrival, the minister said that, in addition to analyzing measures still needed to contain violent attacks, he will discuss, during the visit, structuring investments in the penitentiary system. 
Dino is meeting today with Governor Fátima Bezerra and tomorrow he will present a prognosis of the crisis, in addition to the amount to be invested. “I can say that the schedule is immediate, they are not resources that depend on the voting of laws or budget forecast. These are resources that the Ministry of Justice has, both in the area of public security and in the penitentiary area and, at this moment, Rio Grande do Norte is a national priority. This will be announced tomorrow, and the timeline will depend on this partnership with the state government,” he added.
At least 252 attacks have been made against the population, public buildings, businesses and vehicles since last Tuesday (14), according to data released by the Secretariat of Public Security and Social Defense of RN this Saturday (18). For state authorities, the acts are a retaliation by organized crime to repressive government actions, which resulted in arrests in recent weeks.
The Minister of Justice highlighted that, until now, around 700 police officers from the various federal forces have been sent, which represents an investment of more than R$ 5.3 million. “Who commands Public Security in Rio Grande do Norte is the governor. And we respect that in every state in the country, regardless of the political position of the governor or governor, so we are here in solidarity and reaffirming confidence in the authority of the governor and the state Public Security system.”
Guarantee of Law and Order
Dino also stated that the use of the Guarantee of Law and Order (GLO) mechanism, which includes calling on the Armed Forces, is not being considered at this time, mainly due to the reduction of crisis indicators.
“If GLO is necessary, the governor will ask for it [Fátima Bezerra] and of course we will attend if necessary. That is, there is no ideological position, neither in the sense of doing it tomorrow, nor in the sense of rejecting it. This is a technical decision”, he declared to the press. He added that the measure is defined exclusively by indicators. “Do the indicators on this Sunday night justify a GLO? No,” he stated.
This Friday (17), the President of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), sent a request to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva for the use of the Armed Forces in Rio Grande do Norte. He responded to a request made by Senator Styvenson Valentim (Podemos-RN), who asks for the employment of the Armed Forces based on Article 142 of the Constitution. The article provides for operations of the Guarantee of Law and Order. Authorization to activate the Armed Forces is the responsibility of the Presidency of the Republic.
“In managing a crisis, you cannot have a dogmatic, rigid position. You adapt your planning to the need. Article 144 of the Federal Constitution defines what public security is in Brazil, and this does not include the Armed Forces. The Armed Forces are a kind of extreme remedy when the federal and state public security system completely collapses, which is not the situation we have here in Rio Grande do Norte”, he evaluated.
