The president of the Chamber of Deputies, Hugo Motta (Republicans-PB), again defended the so-called PEC of the armor, or PEC of prerogatives, on Monday (22), the day after the protests that took thousands of people to the streets of all the capitals of Brazil. 
For Motta, the debate was distorted and the PEC would not have been articulated to shield process parliamentarians by “common crimes,” as the critics say, but to contain alleged excesses of the judiciary against deputies.
“We have deputies being prosecuted for opinion crimes, we have deputies being prosecuted by speeches in the podium, we have deputies being prosecuted for use of social networks. This is the reality of the country today,” Motta said during an event promoted by the BTG Pactual bank.
Former President Jair Bolsonaro’s allies, convicted of an attempted coup, have argued that they are being “persecuted” for just “emitting opinion” in the context of the Judgment of the coup plot.
The argument is rejected by court ministers, who qualify the coup movement as an attempt to annul a legitimate election and keep Bolsonaro in power against popular will, crimes provided for in the legislation.
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Also according to Motta, the discussion of the armor PEC was “distorted” and currently, with the strength of social networks, Parliament would not be shielded against common crimes.
“When are we going to have a common crime committed by anyone, go unpunished, especially for a parliamentarian? Of course, the House won’t ease to a parliamentarian who commits a common crime, whatever it may be,” he added.
Lawyer and jurist Marco Aurélio de Carvalho, coordinator of the prerogative group, pondered the Brazil agency That parliamentary immunity cannot be used to protect pronouncements involving slander, injury, attacks on democracy or attempt to obstruct criminal action, such as some deputies.
“We cannot, of course, criminalize the opinion that is the result of honest, frank, transparent and direct political debate. But opinions that, in fact, somehow carry hatred, intolerance, crimes against honor, such as slander, defamation, injury and so many things, have to be examined in the light of the legislation.
This Sunday’s protests had, among the main targets, the current mayor for his role in the approval of the Armage PEC. Critics argue that the proposal was sewn to protect parliamentarians against criminal proceedings.
The Senate Constitution and Justice Commission (CCJ) Gaited the PEC For next Wednesday (24), expecting to reject the project after the negative repercussion.
Amnesty and dosimetry
Motta also defended the reduction of penalties to those convicted of the events that culminated on January 8, 2023. For him, if this debate is not overcome, “very hardly the House will produce normally.”
“What the House wants to build is within the legal rules of the country, recognizing the role that the Supreme fulfilled in that sad episode that was January 8, seeking to impute to those people who went there to break, depredate, those people who set up, for example, plans to kill people,” he said.
For Motta, a change in criminal law is possible to review penalties that Congress understands that they were exaggerated.
“[Caso essa solução seja aprovada] that the judiciary itself [possa] Make a reinterpretation of these penalties and, perhaps, send those just over 180 people who are trapped home today, ”he said.
The mayor concluded that this is a good solution to “distemant this political environment and power, from there, have another agenda” that, according to him, is not “toxic” to the country.
The rapporteur of the bill on the subject, deputy Paulinho da Força (Solidarity-SP), has made statements that the text should not discuss the amnesty, which would be a forgiveness of crimes, but a reduction in penalties through new dosimetry of the crimes committed.
Shield or prerogatives
The Armage PEC gained strength in the House, after actions by the Supreme Court (STF) against parliamentarians involved in the attempted coup d’état that culminated on January 8, 2023 and also with the growth of inquiries to investigate the execution of parliamentary amendmentspublic resources of the order of RS 50 billion annual under the control of the legislature.
With the house arrest of former President Jair Bolsonaro, the opposition occupied the House and Senate plenarypreventing the work of the house and requiring, among other guidelines, the increase in the prerogatives of parliamentarians against STF actions.
On the other hand, experts and organizations acting on the theme of combating corruption warns that the proposal can block Actions against corruption in the use of parliamentary amendments.
The end of the requirement of prior authorization from Parliament for criminal proceedings against deputies and senators was approved by constitutional amendment in December 2001, after hundreds of Cases of impunity shock public opinion throughout the 1990s.
