O que o Congresso Nacional brasileiro pensa sobre a criminalidade

Abstract

Representações do Legislativo Federal brasileiro sobre a criminalidade. O objetivo do trabalho foi explicitar o que o Congresso Nacional pensa a respeito do tema. O período sob análise foi a Qüinquagésima Segunda Legislatura (2003/2007) que, ao longo da história do Parlamento brasileiro registrou o maior número de indícios de ilegalidades cometidas pelos próprios parlamentares. Trabalhamos com a hipótese de que o Congresso Nacional, elaborador da lei, não tem consciência do conjunto de imagens envolvidas na discussão da matéria e que elas intervêm em sua função como estruturador do interdito, da margem, expressa sob a forma de norma legal. A pesquisa teve início com o mapeamento das proposições apresentadas ao longo do período, quantificando-as por tipo de proposição, iniciativa por Partido Político e por Estados. Na seqüência, foi aplicado às Lideranças partidárias, parlamentares formadores de opinião, consultores do Legislativo e assessores da área pública e privada que intervêm na matéria, questionário destinado a identificar as representações sociais vigentes sobre a natureza humana; contato com a realidade criminal brasileira; definição da criminalidade; suas causas; papel da Lei, do Legislativo, do parlamentar e do indivíduo em relação ao tema e dificuldades para o debate da criminalidade no Congresso. A hipótese de desconhecimento dos elaboradores legais sobre representações sociais influentes no trato do tema se confirmou. Foi possível concluir que durante a Qüinquagésima Segunda legislatura aqueles que se envolveram no debate a respeito do crime e da criminalidade foram em sua maioria homens, de alta instrução, formadores de opinião, na faixa da meia-idade, que conhecem pessoalmente a realidade do crime no Brasil, e que têm uma imagem bastante negativa do transgressor, com quem não se identificam. Há prevalência da corrente que considera ser sociológica a origem do crime, mas ainda existem aqueles que defendem a origem genética bem como se registra um crescimento da participação das representações religiosas sobre a matéria. Essas imagens tendem a ser perpetuadas pela ausência de abertura a novas formas de pensar a questão. A mídia é a principal fonte de informação sobre o assunto. A literatura especializada segundo os elaboradores legais, demanda um tempo de que não dispõem. O Congresso agiu de forma casuística. Faltou vontade política e não recursos. Constituiu-se um sentimento de impotência e registros de insatisfação diante da postura do Executivo. Mostrou seguir a tendência vigente em outros Parlamentos do mundo para o endurecimento no trato com o criminoso, praticamente nenhuma preocupação com sua recuperação e um trabalho focado quase que exclusivamente no crime “do pobre” sinalizando que a elite não é vista como autora na criminalidade. _______________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT

The images and ideas [representation] of criminality held by the Brazilian Legislators This work aims at elucidating how the members of the 52nd Legislature (2003/2007) in the Brazilian National Congress see criminality and what they think about it. The period analyzed corresponds to the one in which the highest number ever of alleged illegal acts perpetrated by the representatives themselves has been registered. I have worked with the hypothesis that the law-makers in Congress are not aware of the body of images and ideas [representations] they carry about criminality, being also unaware of the fact that their personal beliefs and preferences inform the way they perform their legislative function, and become embodied in the legal norms they produce. The research started identifying all the proposals submitted to Congress during the period, which were classified in terms of their kind, political party which took the initiative, and State of origin. In the second phase, a questionnaire was applied to the party leaders, opinion makers among the representatives, consultants who advise the Legislative, and public and private advisers who have a say in the matter. The questionnaires were used to identify the prevalent social representations about human nature; the degree of knowledge about the question of criminality in Brazil; how the legislators define criminality and identify their causes; the respective roles played by the Law, the Legislative, the representatives and the individuals concerning the theme, and the difficulties surrounding the debate on criminality in the National Congress. The hypothesis that the lawmakers ignore the social representations which influence their way to deal with the issue was confirmed. During the 52nd Legislature, those representatives who got involved in the debates about crime and criminality were mainly middle-aged men with high education, opinion makers who have personal knowledge about the reality of crime in Brazil and have a rather negative image of the criminals, with whom they have no identification. The group of representatives which sees crime from a sociological perspective is the prevalent one. However, there are others who still emphasize genetic causes for criminality, as well as a growing number of manifestations about the matter which are informed by religious principles. These genetic and religious views tend to be perpetuated due to the lack of disposition to explore new ways to approach the question. Newspapers, weekly magazines and TVs are still the main sources of information about the subject, since the recourse to the specialized literature is too time consuming, according to the law makers interviewed. During the period examined, the National Congress behaved in a casuistic manner when dealing with the question of crime and criminality. This was due to the lack of political will, not of financial resources. There was a widespread feeling of impotence and criticism about the position assumed by the Executive concerning the matter. The Brazilian Congress has been following the tendency registered in other Parliaments around the world, adopting a tough attitude to deal with criminals, showing practically no concern with their recovery and performing a work almost exclusively focused on the crimes committed by “the poor”, showing that the elite is not seen as an author in the universe of criminality. _______________________________________________________________________________________ RESUMÉ

Représentations du Pouvoir Législatif Fédéral Brésilien en matière de criminalité L’objectif de cette étude est d’expliciter la vision du Congrès National à propos de cette question. La période analysée porte sur la cinquante deuxième législature (2003/2007) au cours de laquelle le Parlement Brésilien a enregistré le plus grand nombre d’indices d’inégalités commises par les parlementaires euxmêmes. Nous avons retenu l’hypothèse de travail selon laquelle le Congrès National, en tant que législateur, n’a pas une conscience claire de l’ensemble des images et des représentations impliquées dans un tel sujet. La recherche a commencé par une cartographie des propositions dite de quantification globale faites par chaque parti politique et aussi par les Etats au cours de cette période. Les questionnaires ont d’abord été présentés aux leaders des partis politiques puis aux parlementaires formateurs d’opinion, aux spécialistes du Pouvoir Législatif et enfin aux assesseurs des secteurs public et privé intervenants. Ce questionnaire avait pour objet d’identifier à la fois : les représentations sociales de la nature humaine en jeu; le contact avec la réalité criminelle brésilienne; le cadre de définition de cette criminalité et de ses causes; les rôles respectifs de la Loi, du pouvoir Législatif, du parlementaire et de l’individu dans les difficultés que connaît le débat sur la criminalité au sein du Congrès. Les résultats de cette étude confirment l’hypothèse d’une méconnaissance, par les législateurs, des représentations sociales intervenant dans cette question. Au cours de cette cinquante deuxième législature ceux qui ont participé aux débats sur le crime et la criminalité appartenaient en majorité au sexe masculin, étaient d’âges mûrs et possédaient un niveau d’instruction élevé. Ces formateurs d’opinion connaissent personnellement la réalité du crime au Brésil et ont une image très négative du transgresseur avec lequel ils ne s’identifient pas. Une majorité d’entre eux considère que l’origine du crime est sociologique mais certains défendent encore l’idée d’une origine génétique ; on note également une recrudescence du recours aux représentations religieuses sur ce sujet. Cette situation tend à se perpétuer compte tenu de l’absence d’ouverture conceptuelles. Les médias restent la principale source d’information pour les législateurs consultés faute de temps nécessaire pour consulter la littérature spécialisée. Le Congrès a agi de façon casuistique. Manque de volonté politique et non de ressources. Un sentiment d’impuissance et d’insatisfaction s’est installé devant l’attitude du Pouvoir Exécutif. Le Congrès Brésilien a donc suivi la tendance déjà observée dans d’autres Parlements du monde à savoir un endurcissement dans le traitement du criminel, peu ou pas de préoccupation concernant sa réintégration et un travail tourné presque exclusivement vers le crime « du pauvre », suggérant ainsi que l’élite n’est pas vue comme l’auteur de la criminalité.