Interim Report - Report No 131, 1972

Case No 632 (Brazil) - Complaint date: 08-JUN-70 - Closed

1. 119. The Committee last examined this case at its 59th Session, held in Geneva on 8 November 1971, when it submitted to the Governing Body an interim report, contained in paragraphs 198 to 225 of its 127th Report. This report was approved by the Governing Body at its 184th Session (November 1971).
2. 120. After the Committee's last examination of the case, two series of allegations remained outstanding; those relating to the arrest of Messrs. Herval Arueira and Demisthoclides Batista, and those relating to the arrest and death of Mr. Olavo Hansen.

A. A. The complainants' allegations

• Allegations relating to Messrs. Herval Arueira and Demisthoclides Batista
  121. 121 It was alleged that Messrs. Arueira and Batista had been prosecuted for carrying on their trade union activities and sentenced to terms of imprisonment. The Government, for its part, declared that these persons had been sentenced, in accordance with Act No. 1802 of 1953, for committing crimes against the State and against the political and social order, and not for exercising their trade union rights.
  122. 122 At its 59th Session the Committee, in accordance with the practice it has always followed in cases of this kind, recommended the Governing Body to request the Government to supply the text of the provisions of Act No. 1802 of 1953, which Messrs. Batista and Arueira were said to have infringed, and the text of the judgements delivered against these persons, together with the grounds adduced therefor.
  123. 123 This request was communicated to the Government in a letter dated 29 November 1971. The Government replied by a communication, dated 7 February 1972, which was received too late for the Committee to be able to examine it in detail at its 60th Session (February 1972).
  124. 124 In its reply, the Government states that under the terms of section 13 of Act No. 1802 of 1953, the penalty for persons found guilty of " incitement to, organisation of, direction of or assistance in the paralysing of the public services and the provisioning of cities " shall be two to five years' imprisonment.
  125. 125 The Government also states that it was for infringement of section 13 of the abovementioned Act that Messrs. Arueira and Batista were sentenced, after a proper trial, to three years' imprisonment.
  126. 126 The Government adds, however, that, upon appeal by these convicted persons, the Higher Military Court ruled that the sentences pronounced by the court of first instance should be quashed, and acquitted both men.
  127. 127 In these circumstances, being of the opinion that no useful purpose would be served by pursuing the examination of this aspect of the case, the Committee recommends the Governing Body to decide that it does not call for further examination.
• Allegations relating to Mr. Olavo Hansen
  128. 128 When it last examined this aspect of the case, the Committee recommended the Governing Body to express its regret that the Government had failed to supply the information which had been requested concerning allegations of a most serious nature, and to note that, in view of the contradictions which existed between the allegations formulated and the information supplied by the Government, the Committee had decided to request the complainants to furnish any precise information and evidence at their disposal concerning the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Olavo Hansen and the discovery of his body.
  129. 129 The Committee's conclusions were brought to the knowledge of the parties concern however, neither the complainants nor the Government have supplied any further information in this connection.
  130. 130 The allegations relating to Mr. Olavo Hansen had been formulated by the Latin American Federation of Christian Trade Unions (CLASC) in a communication, dated 8 June 1970, by the World Confederation of Labour (WCL) in a communication dated 17 June 1970 and by the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) in a communication dated 19 June 1970. The Government had forwarded its observations by a communication dated 27 October 1970.
  131. 131 The complainants maintained that a São Paulo trade unionist, Mr. Olavo Hansen, had been arrested together with 16 of his colleagues during the officially authorised May Day celebrations at the " Maria Zélia " sports ground in São Paulo. It was further alleged that Hansen had been subjected to lengthy interrogation by the political police (DEOPS) and so badly treated that when he got back to his cell he could no longer stand. For several days he was said to have been left lying in his bed, unable to get up, speak or even urinate. On 13 May his corpse was found near the Ipiranga Museum, covered with lesions and contusions-the product of the brutal tortures to which he was said to have been subjected. His death was officially registered on 9 May 1970, but his family was informed only on 13 May 1970 (the date on which his corpse was discovered).
  132. 132 Two of the complaining organisations (the WCL and the CLASC) asked for the appointment by the ILO of a commission of inquiry to carry out an on-the-spot investigation in Brazil in view of the repeated and serious infringements of freedom of association and human rights in that country.
  133. 133 The Government forwarded its observations on the allegations analysed in paragraph 131 above in its communication of 27 October 1970. The Government's reply essentially consisted in a summary of the report to the examining magistrate on an official investigation carried out by the Public Prosecutor's Office to determine the cause of Olavo Hansen's death. According to this document, Olavo Hansen and others were arrested on 1 May 1970 at the " Vila Maria Zélia " Sports Stadium and a police inquiry was ordered into their attempted breach of the security of the State, which consisted in the distribution of subversive pamphlets. According to the Government, Hansen was a militant member of the Trotskyist wing, who had already been brought to trial before a military court in 1964 and who maintained contact with individuals charged with crimes against national security besides being an agent for the newspaper Frente Operaria (an organ of the Revolutionary Workers' Labour Party).
  134. 134 The Government further stated that after Hansen had been handed over to the No. 1 Police Battalion and then to the Operação Bandeirantes (OBAN), he was interrogated by the Department of Political and Social Order (DEOPS) on 4 May 1970. Mr. Dias, who carried out the preliminary questioning, noted that at the time " he showed no signs of any injury or ill treatment ".
  135. 135 The Government added that on 8 May, Hansen said he did not feel well and asked for a doctor. He was examined by Dr. Ciscato (the physician at the policlinic of the DEOPS), who ordered him to be taken to the Army General Hospital in São Paulo, where he was given a bed and suitable treatment. He died at about 6 a.m. the following morning (9 May); the cause of death was established by the duty doctor at the hospital as being kidney failure due to a chronic, and finally acute condition. The post-mortem report of the same date stated that internal examination of the body was negative from the anatomopathological and forensic standpoints. However, a toxicological examination of the stomach content, of the liver and of a blood sample was positive in revealing the presence of the insecticide " Paration ".
  136. 136 The Government further stated that up to the evening before his arrest Mr. Hansen had been working at the " Industria Agro-Pecuaria ", an undertaking which handles fertilisers and insecticides, some of the latter containing a product called " Paration ". While it had not been established that he had any of this product on his person at the time of his arrest, the police thought it possible that he might have had some hidden in his clothing or about his person. The Government further advised that Dr. Ciscato, who had been called out on the night of 8 May to examine Hansen, had claimed that Hansen had told him that he had suffered from kidney trouble for many years and was undergoing treatment for it. Dr. Ciscato was of the opinion that Hansen's death was due to kidney failure.
  137. 137 The Government stated in conclusion that the investigation into the cause of Olavo Hansen's death bad revealed exogenous poisoning by the insecticide " Paration " as the most likely cause of death, since all the evidence showed that at the time of his arrest he either had a quantity of this poison on his person or else was suffering from chronic poisoning which led to kidney failure. The Government accordingly maintained that since he had been in this condition prior to his admission to the military hospital, and since he had received proper medical treatment at the hospital, his death was due to natural causes and could not therefore be attributed to any third parties.
  138. 138 The Committee pointed out at its session in February 1971 that in cases of this kind, where it is alleged that the death of a person has a direct bearing on the exercise of trade union rights, the Committee has invariably stressed the desirability of the Government's instituting an immediate and impartial inquiry in order to elucidate the facts and to determine responsibilities. In the present case it appeared to the Committee from the Government's observations that an inquiry had been held and that the inquiry had concluded that no third party could be held responsible for Hansen's death.
  139. 139 The Committee felt bound to point out, however, that, while the inquiry had concluded that Hansen had died on 9 May 1970 as a result of " Paration " poisoning operating on a kidney condition, the Government had not presented any comments or observations with regard to the allegation that Hansen's bruised and battered corpse had been found outside the Ipiranga Museum on 13 May 1970, the day on which Hansen's family was notified of his death. The Committee considered that it required further information from the Government in order to enable it to reach its conclusions on this aspect of the complaint.
  140. 140 As regards the requests made by the CLASC and the WCL on 8 and 17 June 1970 respectively for the sending to Brazil of an ILO commission of inquiry to investigate on the spot the repeated and serious infringements of freedom of association and human rights, the Committee considered it premature to make any recommendation concerning these requests until the Government had had an opportunity of providing this further information.
  141. 141 The Committee accordingly recommended the Governing Body to request the Government to supply detailed information concerning the procedure followed during the interrogation of Mr. Olavo Hansen, and to request the Government to communicate its observations concerning the allegations according to which the body of Olavo Hansen was found, covered with lesions and contusions, near the Ipiranga Museum on 13 May 1970, as well as the text of the judgement delivered and the grounds adduced therefor.
  142. 142 In a communication dated 20 October 1971, the Government confined itself to pointing out that, as stated in the information supplied previously, Mr. Olavo Hansen had been detained as a result of his subversive activities, as laid down in the law, and not as a result of his trade union activities. The Government repeated that Mr. Olavo Hansen had died in the military general hospital of São Paulo, a fact which, in its opinion, removed any basis from the allegations referred to in the preceding paragraph.
  143. 143 In the light of this communication, which did not answer fully to what had been requested, the Committee, at its November 1971 Session, took the view that it was necessary to draw the attention of the Government to the following observation, contained in paragraph 31 of its First Report: " The purpose of the whole procedure is to promote respect for trade union rights in law and in fact, and the Committee is confident that, if it protects governments against unreasonable accusations, governments on their side will recognise the importance for the protection of their own good name of formulating for objective examination detailed factual replies to such detailed factual charges as may be put forward."
  144. 144 At the same session the Committee, as stated above, requested the complainants to furnish any precise information and evidence at their disposal concerning this aspect of the case.
  145. 145 Since its November 1971 Session no new information has been brought to the attention of the Committee with regard to this particular aspect of the case.
  146. 146 In view of the attitude adopted by the Government in this connection, the Committee considers it pointless at the present stage to express an opinion on the request made by the complainants for the appointment of a commission of inquiry.
  147. 147 In these circumstances, the Committee recommends the Governing Body-(a) to note, once again, the serious nature of the allegations relating to the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Olavo Hansen; (b) to accord once again to the complainants the opportunity of supplying the information mentioned in paragraph 144 above and to request the Government once again to communicate the information referred to in paragraph 141 above.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 148. With regard to the case as a whole, the Committee recommends the Governing Body:
   • (a) to decide, for the reasons indicated in paragraphs 126 and 127 above, that the allegations relating to Messrs. Herval Arueira and Demisthoclides Batista do not call for further examination;
   • (b) as regards the allegations relating to Mr. Olavo Hansen:
   • (i) to note, once again, the serious nature of the allegations relating to the circumstances surrounding the death of the person concerned;
   • (ii) to accord once again to the complainants the opportunity of supplying any precise information and evidence at their disposal concerning this aspect of the case;
   • (iii) to request the Government, once again, to communicate detailed information concerning the procedure followed during the interrogation of Mr. Olavo Hansen, and supply its observations concerning the allegations that the body of Olavo Hansen was found covered with lesions and contusions near the Iparanga Museum on 13 May 1970;
   • (c) to take note of the present interim report, it being understood that the Committee will submit a further report when the information referred to above has been received.