BRAZIL’S COUNTERTERRORISM APPARATUS AND ITS EFFECTIVENESS IN PREVENTING AND NEUTRALIZING EXTREMIST THREATS

Abstract

Brazil has recently made several advances in its legal framework, in the prevention and persecution of terrorism as a crime and domestic threat. This article aims at analyzing said framework and advances and how they contributed to make the phenomenon part of the country’s public reality. By studying the normative acts and conducting a thorough literature review concerning radicalization processes, the intention was to assess Brazil’s capabilities to combat terrorism through the analysis of concrete cases. The conclusion was that recent experiences in identifying threats and the subsequent investigations, criminal indictments, accusations and judgments may show that the terrorism combat cycle has been effective in the country, involving several government agencies from early intelligence stages all the way through law enforcement, judicial prosecution and carrying out of sentences. Nevertheless, the article has identified a few areas for further advancement in that structure as to effectively mitigate the complex and often elusive roots of violent extremism. Advances that are needed specially while facing the everchanging context of international terrorism bring about new challenges to the organs that are a part of the Brazilian intelligence community.