Brazil truth commission: Abuse 'rife' under military rule

[Judi Lynn]

6. Brazil panel details dictatorship's brutality

Brazil panel details dictatorship's brutality

"Truth commission" probing abuses during 1964-85 military regime presents 2,000-page report to President Rousseff.

Last updated: 11 Dec 2014 03:43

A "truth commission" investigating abuses during Brazil's 1964-85 dictatorship has called for the prosecution of former military officers and some private companies for their role in human rights atrocities, in a long-awaited report.

The probe's leaders presented their 2,000-page report on Wednesday to an emotional President Dilma Rousseff, herself a former Marxist who was jailed and tortured by the regime in the 1970s.

They identified 377 people, including some generals, as responsible for what they described as crimes against humanity, including the systematic use of torture, rape, forced disappearances and murder of the military's opponents.

About 200 of the alleged perpetrators are still alive.

Unlike some other Cold War-era dictatorships in South America, Brazil's military officers never faced trial, in part because they negotiated an amnesty law several years before leaving power that protected them from most future prosecution.

More:
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2014/12/brazil-panel-details-dictatorship-brutality-20141211351714137.html