WBO Supports Public Note from Organizations Spied on by “Parallel Abin”
WBO Statement
July 16 2024
In a note published on Monday, July 15 the Washington Brazil Office (WBO) joins the group of Brazilian civil society organizations that denounces the illegal spying carried out by agents of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (ABIN) during the mandate of the now former President Jair Bolsonaro.
According to information from the ongoing investigation, among the organizations that were victims of spying, Sleeping Giants Brasil, Advocacy Hub, Aos Fatos, Instituto Sou da Paz, NOSSAS and Agência Lupa, four are affiliated to the WBO.
The statement regarding the case is signed by 28 organizations. In alphabetical order they are: Associação Brasileira de Jornalismo Investigativo (ABRAJI), the Associação de Jornalismo Digital (AJOR), Aláfia Lab, Aliança Nacional LGBTI+, Associação Brasileira de Famílias Homotransafetivas (ABRAFH), Avaaz, Coalizão em Defesa do Jornalismo, Ekō, Frente Ampla Democrática pelos Direitos Humanos (FADDH), Federação Nacional dos Jornalistas (FENAJ), Girl Up Brasil, Instituto Aaron Swartz, Instituto Democracia em Xeque, Instituto GENi - Gênero e Interseccionalidades, Instituto Lamparina, Instituto Vladimir Herzog, InternetLab, Intervozes - Coletivo Brasil de Comunicação Social, Netlab UFRJ, Observatório do Clima, Projeto Saúde e Alegria, Rede Gay Latino, Rede Liberdade, Rede Nacional de Combate à Desinformação (RNCD), Repórteres Sem Fronteiras (RSF), Teia de Criadores, Transparência Internacional – Brasil, and Washington Brazil Office (WBO).
The letter explains that with the partial lifting of the secrecy of the investigations into the so-called Operation Last Mile by the Federal Police and the corresponding procedures in the Supreme Court, it became public knowledge that agents working for Bolsonaro used the powers and privileges of his intelligence access to spy on political opponents, including press agencies and civil society organizations.
“The issue is extremely serious, involving the persecution of individuals and organizations with the clear intention of curtailing their civil and political rights,” the statement reads. “It is evident that ABIN was used as a criminal spying machine, supporting efforts aimed at abolishing the democratic rule of law and deposing the new legitimately constituted government,” it adds.
The organizations are “closely monitoring the development of the investigations” and request the National Secretariat of Justice of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security and other competent bodies “to take immediate measures to protect and guarantee the safety of the activities of institutions and individuals whose fundamental rights were violated by the criminal scheme that has just come to light.”
Read the letter.
