Brazil: Moro Fully Supports Loosening Arms Possession Laws

Brazil’s Minister of Justice Sergio Moro is in support of relaxing legislation surrounding weapons possession, an exclusive televised interview with O Globo revealed Monday.

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Moro told reporters that President-elect Jair Bolsonaro is committed to easing the “very restrictive” legislation which currently only allows for arms possession within the home. The minister defended the motion, saying that allowing flexibility would not essentially contribute to changes in criminal activity or organizations.

“Possession means that the person can have a weapon inside the house, not that he walks around with the gun,” he said, adding that improvements to the judicial system and police procedure would control illegal activity.

Despite some preliminary reservations, Moro has rallied behind a number of Bolsonaro’s proposals, including lowering the age of criminal accountability to 18.

“Think of a family in which one of its members was the victim of a homicide committed by a teenager over the age of 16. People want a response from the institutional state and the current system, which provides for very small penalties for crimes of that nature, seriously, is unsatisfactory,” he said.

When questioned on the rise of hate crimes targeting LGBTI communities, Blacks, women, and minorities as well as Bolsonaro’s own discriminatory behavior displayed during his candidacy, Moro said he hadn’t noticed any such behavior, although all crimes would be severely punished.

“I would never enter a government if there was a shadow of suspicion that there would be some policy in that sense,” he said.

Moro oversaw the so-called "Operation Car Wash" probe responsible for the conviction of former progressive president Lula for bribery and money laundering, which blocked him from running against Jair Bolsonaro earlier this year when he led opinion polls.