Number of pistols and revolvers imported in January 2022 is the highest in history for the month, says survey
A total of 10.412 items were brought from abroad, a number higher than the monthly average for 2021, when Brazil broke the record for weapons purchased from foreign countries.
Paulo Motoryn, Brasil de Fato | Brasília (DF) - The number of revolvers and pistols imported by Brazilians in January 2022 was the highest for the month since the beginning of the historical series in 1997. A total of 10.412 items were brought from abroad, a number higher than the monthly average of 2021, when Brazil broke its historical record for weapons purchased from foreign countries.
The survey was conducted by Brasil de Fato on the Comex Stat platform, maintained by the federal government to monitor Brazil's imports and exports over the past 25 years. The results revealed by the report show that the trend in pistol and revolver imports continues to rise.
The figures show that imports of these types of weapons have more than tripled since 2018. The growth was 228% in the last four years, reaching US$39 million in 2021. The number of items also grew exponentially, jumping from 7.156 in 1997 to 119.147 last year.
O Atlas of Violence 2021, from Institute of Applied Economic Research (Ipea)It points out that more than 30 decrees and regulations easing access to and purchase of weapons have been published since President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) took office. Some of the measures, however, have been suspended by the Judiciary.
The Supreme Federal Court's (STF) judgment on some of the measures was interrupted in September of last year, following a request for review by Minister Nunes Marques, appointed to the Court by the head of the Executive branch. One of the actions awaiting the Supreme Court's decision is a resolution that eliminates the import tax on pistols and revolvers. The current rate is 20%.
The number of weapons used by amateurs surpasses that of the Military Police.
In January, Brasil de Fato showed that the easing of access to weapons and ammunition in Brazil during the Bolsonaro administration, coupled with the difficulty of control and tracking mechanisms, has become a cause for concern, mainly because it is directly related to the increase in violence.
A survey conducted by lawyer and manager of the Sou da Paz Institute, Bruno Langeani, for his most recent book, Firearms: Trigger of Violence in Brazil, published by Telha, indicates that the number of firearms in circulation in the Hunter, Sports Shooter and Collector (CAC) category in Brazil is already greater than the total number of firearms held by the Military Police institution.
According to data obtained by the author from the National Weapons System (SINARM) and the Military Weapons Management System (SIGMA), as of April 2021, users in the CAC category accounted for a total of 648.731 weapons, while the total number of weapons held by the Military Police amounted to 583.498.
As a report published by Brasil de Fato showed last December, in addition to CACs obtaining large quantities of weapons and ammunition, presidential decrees have declassified a series of items that were considered Controlled Products by the Army (PCEs). Today, a user in the CAC category can have access, for example, to a 7.62 caliber semi-automatic rifle, which was previously restricted.
Guns and homicides: directly proportional
In Langeani's assessment, there is a direct link between increased gun circulation and homicide. He believes the impacts of adopting this measure without effective oversight by the relevant agencies are already well known to the Brazilian population.
“The period in which homicides grew the most in Brazil was during the arms race in the 1990s. Brazil is seeing something similar with the Bolsonaro government. At the end of 2018, we had a drop in homicides that continued somewhat into 2019. The easing of gun laws began, mainly, from May 2019 and hasn't stopped until now, even with the pandemic. And, with all this issue of business closures, we are seeing more and more gun purchases, and this is already starting to have an impact on the indicators,” the lawyer points out in an interview with Brasil de Fato.
"A dangerous project that threatens Brazil's future"
Last year, Brasil de Fato spoke with Douglas Belchior, one of the coordinators of the Black Coalition for Rights. At the request of the reporter, he commented on the growth in the number of guns in Brazil and pointed out the relationship between these numbers and the period of President Jair Bolsonaro's term in office.
"In a markedly racist society like ours, when you arm the population, especially the middle class and those who adhere to this type of thinking, you put historically stigmatized people at greater risk," Belchior points out.
"The danger falls on those who are already victims of armed violence—both official violence, promoted by the government, the police, and militias; and widespread civil violence," he argues. According to him, it is necessary to recognize that "it is not only the police, through their coordinated, genocidal, and racist actions, who murder Black people."
"Widespread civil violence—which occurs through the use of weapons—also preferentially targets the Black population. In this way, the numbers confirm an absolutely dangerous project that compromises the country's future," he points out.
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