Renan guarantees assistance to fans stranded in Bolivia.
"The Brazilian embassy in La Paz has been providing assistance to Brazilians since it became aware of their detention by Bolivian authorities," stated the Senate president; he designated Senator Ricardo Ferraço to visit the prison.
The Senate Agency - The president of the Senate, Renan Calheiros, said that the House will make every effort to assist the fans detained in Bolivia.
"The Brazilian embassy in La Paz has been providing assistance to Brazilians since it became aware of their detention by Bolivian authorities. Our intention is to reinforce this assistance and make ourselves available to help in any way necessary," explained Renan.
Senator Ricardo Ferraço's (PMDB-ES) visit to the prison to verify the situation of the imprisoned Brazilians was ordered by the Senate president after the Foreign Relations Committee received complaints that the Brazilians were being held in undignified conditions in the neighboring country. The city of Oruro, where the prison is located, is 230 kilometers from the Bolivian capital.
Ferraço calls for government intervention in the case.
Ricardo Ferraço met this Tuesday with the 12 Corinthians fans imprisoned in Bolivia since February 20th due to the death of 14-year-old Bolivian Kevin Espada, a victim of a flare fired during a game against San José. President of the Foreign Relations Committee (CRE), Ferraço said the situation is very delicate and requested direct action from the Brazilian government.
"They are being held in a prison that has a capacity for 200 people, but houses 1.500, along with drug traffickers, rapists, and dangerous criminals. The evidence points to the innocence of these young men. There is a great effort from the Brazilian embassy, but the problem will require direct involvement from the government, from the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Patriota, and Justice, José Eduardo Cardozo," he stated.
According to Ferraço, the fans are very shaken by the lack of prospects. In Bolivia, pre-trial detention can last up to six months, and the mood, the senator stressed, is one of demanding the punishment of the Brazilians at any cost. Ferraço said that the Nassau Treaty, which allows the exchange of procedural information, could be applied, but there is the complication that the crime was committed by a minor under 18 years of age.
"Bolivia could consider the investigations carried out in Brazil, but there the age of criminal responsibility is 16, which complicates things," he said.
After the prison visit, Ferraço would return to the capital to meet with Bolivian ministers.
I intend to express to them my concern for the lives of these Brazilians.