In 20 Years, Death of Young Brazilians Grows from 30 to 55 per 100,000

The number of young people murdered in Brazil nearly doubled in a little over 20 years, according to the Brazilian anthropologist, Alba Zaluar.

She said that, between 1980 and 2002, the number of homicide victims per 100 thousand youths in the population rose from 30 to nearly 55. 93% of the victims were males; only 7% were females.

According to Zaluar, this index shows that the situation in Brazil cannot be compared with a civil war, even though the number of deaths is similar.

"In a civil war, men and women and children and old folks die alike," she observed. In her opinion, what is going on is a private war.

"Here the war isn’t among social or ethnic groups but among rival gangs and between them and the police."

The factors leading young people to dedicate their lives to crime, especially drug and arms trafficking, should also come under scrutiny, Zaluar argues.

That means taking into account not only the monetary rewards that attract people from poor financial circumstances.

Uruguay Agreement

The Brazilian and Uruguayan governments will take the first step today, May 19, to try to resolve mutual problems affecting children, adolescents, and their families, especially in the border region.

They will sign a protocol of intentions in which the two countries assume the commitment of exchanging experiences related to the formulation of programs, plans, and projects in the area of child and adolescent care.

The document will be signed on behalf of Brazil by the head of the Special Secretariat for Human Rights, minister Paulo Vannuchi, during a visit to the Uruguayan capital, Montevideo.

Vannuchi has meetings scheduled with the Uruguayan minister of National Defense, Azucena Berrutti, and the presidential secretary, Gonzalo Fernandez.

Agência Brasil

Tags:

You May Also Like

New Zealand and Brazil Discover Each Other for Work and Pleasure

"Brazil with its 190 million people and huge land area and resources offers enormous ...

Brazil’s Petrobras Joins the Exclusive US$ 100 Billion Club

For the first time ever, Brazil's oil giant state-controlled Petrobras shares reached the value ...

Political Instability and Oil Prices Put Brazil in the Red

Latin American markets continued to decline, as both Brazil and Mexico came under pressure. ...

Brazil Confident It Will Reach Agreement with Bolivia on Gas Prices

The Brazilian Minister of Foreign Relations, Celso Amorim, commented today, May 4, that the ...

Brazil: The Cruel Rite of Churrasco

The Brazilian tradition of churrasco is a lamentable example of mere human selfish gluttony. ...

Too hot to handle

The Brazilian Justice has banned a song calling it gratuitously violent. For some observers ...

Bossa Nova Killed Opera in Brazil

The sultry new sounds that bossa nova actively came to encompass would give an ...

Rugby in Brazil? Don’t Laugh!

Compared to football, rugby is almost non-existent in Brazil. But it isn’t entirely absent. ...

Brazilian sailor and adventurer Amyr Klink

Brazil’s Number One Sailor and His Search for the Ideal Travelling Machine

Sailor Amyr Klink, the son of a Lebanese father and a Swedish mother, is ...

Despite Strong Real Foreigners Are Buying More Brazilian Companies

The share of foreign capital in mergers and acquisitions in Brazil has increased in ...