Barbosa is in favor of unauthorized biographies.
According to the president of the Supreme Federal Court, works that have a devastating effect on the life of the subject of a biography should result in the payment of "heavy compensations"; according to him, "the ideal would be total freedom of publication, but everyone assumes the risks. If someone's rights are violated, [the author] will have to answer financially. This would create a responsibility for those who write."
Flávia Villela
Reporter from Agência Brasil
Rio de Janeiro – The president of the Supreme Federal Court (STF), Joaquim Barbosa, said today (14) that he is against the removal from circulation of unauthorized biographies. For the minister, works that have a devastating effect on the life of the person whose biography is being written about should result in the payment of “heavy compensation”.
"Ideally, there would be total freedom of publication, but everyone assumes the risks. If someone's rights are violated, the author will have to answer financially. This would create a sense of responsibility for those who write," he said. The minister participated this morning in the panel "Institutional Advances and Setbacks" at the Global Conference on Investigative Journalism at the Pontifical Catholic University (PUC).
The Civil Code allows biographical books and films in four situations: direct authorization from the person being portrayed; necessity for the administration of justice; maintenance of public order; or consent of a relative, if the subject of the biography has died. However, Bill 393/11, currently under consideration in the National Congress, proposes the production of biographical films and the publication of biographical books without the need for prior authorization from the subject or their family. According to the bill, these so-called unauthorized biographies will be valid for public figures, living or deceased.
Currently, the subjects of biographies or their families have appealed against such works and have obtained favorable court rulings for their removal from circulation.
Barbosa considers the decisions of some judges as "deviations." "Prior censorship is bad, it's not allowed, it's illegal, but unfortunately there are those who deviate, make mistakes, and that's what's been happening in Brazil. These isolated cases of censorship here and there are deviations, mistakes inadvertently made by some judges."
Edited by: Carolina Pimentel