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Brazil
says NO to Gun Control
by Diogo Waki
The international left was monitoring with
great expectations the results of Brazil’s weekend referendum
on a nationwide ban on the sale of guns and ammunition. A
Yes vote would have been celebrated as a victory for gun control
not only in Brazil but worldwide.
However, to the dismay of the left, the Yes
vote suffered a crushing defeat. An overwhelming 63.9% of
Brazilians -- practically two thirds of the vote -- said No
to the proposed government ban.
An Overview
The controversy began in December 2003 when President Luiz
Inácio Lula da Silva, despite stiff opposition, approved
the Disarmament Statute as a “Christmas gift”
to Brazilians. The law clashed with several constitutional
clauses and required a number of procedural tricks to be
approved by Congress. As a matter of fact, four lawsuits
were immediately filed with the Brazilian Supreme Court
to have the law overturned as unconstitutional.
However, one of the Statute’s articles
made the arms and ammunition ban contingent upon approval
by a nationwide referendum. The October 23 referendum marked
the first time any government has put a gun ban to the vote.
Congress Calls a Referendum
In the beginning of the referendum battle, the media supported
a Yes vote almost unanimously. Only rarely were gun control
opponents given a chance to speak out.
It seemed that for a long time, the vast
majority of Brazilians were unaware of the stakes. Five
years ago, the Coalition for Legitimate Self-Defense (bringing
together several hunting and sport shooting associations)
started an intense effort, particularly on the Internet,
to organize people to try and preserve the citizens’
legal right to bear arms. Later, other organizations joined
the Coalition.
The referendum was a perfect occasion to
wake up the public and show the government that the vast
majority of Brazilians would not accept a ban on the sale
of arms and munitions. For this end, the Coalition started
holding debates and lectures for professional groups, universities,
religious groups and parishes, and publishing articles in
newspapers defending the right to own and bear arms for
self-defense.
Free television
time
Brazil’s electoral laws require that, in the month
preceding any election, free television and media space
be equally shared by opposing parties. This provision provided
the greatest opportunity for conservatives to make themselves
heard. Two parliamentary fronts were formed, one defending
a Yes vote (misleadingly called Parliamentary Front for
the Right to Life) and another supporting the No vote (Parliamentary
Front for the Right to Legitimate Self-Defense). The debate,
which, until then, had been limited to intellectual circles
and those with greater Internet access, spread to the general
population.
Brazil became divided over the issue. On
the one side were the usually more conservative proponents
of the right to own and bear arms. On the other side were
the media, leftist politicians (Workers Party and Communist
Party members, etc.) and the left wing of more centrist
parties, allied with key elements of the Catholic left including
many leftist bishops which publicly called upon Catholics
to support the ban.
As the date approached, defenders of the
No vote, plus some politicians who mustered enough courage
to brave the politically correct Yes vote, intensified their
action. The parliamentary front supporting the No vote put
together well prepared news items with clear messages for
the people. Nevertheless, the lack of proportion in strength
and resources between the two camps was enormous: the Yes
vote camp was like a mighty Goliath against a tiny David
for the No.
Gradually, some normally leftist intellectual
and artistic circles began to join the No-vote bandwagon.
Public opinion appeared to be waking up from a longstanding
lethargy and to realize their rights were threatened. They
realized that the law would merely disarm honest citizens
while criminals would remain armed and grow even stronger.
This apparently was the critical moment when the situation
changed and become irreversible.
Opinion polls, which had shown an overwhelming
80% in favor of the Yes vote at the time the referendum
was called, now began to show a decisive shift toward the
No vote. Leftist politicians fell silent, as proponents
of gun control tried to minimize poll results.
On October 23, the die was cast: It was
perhaps the first time Brazil had voted en masse against
a government proposal. The No vote won in nearly every Brazilian
state.
The hopes of the Brazilian and international
left were dashed, as their gamble backfired. Disconcerted,
they are now striving to explain to their grassroots what
went wrong. Many gun control promoters question whether the
matter will ever be discussed again. Others note that many
Brazilians are now insisting on the right to bear arms - a
provision not explicitly found in the Constitution.
The Day after
Today’s Brazil is a far cry from the Brazil of yesterday.
A certainty has been established in public opinion that people
must stand up for their rights and that, by organizing and
putting up a struggle, they can accomplish their goals. Is
this not the same wave of conservatism that one sees in the
United States, which also echoes the No vote by France and
Holland on the European Constitution? Time will tell.
Diogo Waki is São Paulo
state coordinator for the Campaign for Legitimate Self-Defense
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