EXECUTIONS

44To these reasons, one other justification may be added: to acceptthat criminals and state agents violate rights on equal terms is, to a certainextent, to equate them! This, though, is not possible, for the simplereason, among others, that society does not demand criminals that respecthuman rights; society desires simply that there be no criminals. In fact,from a logical perspective, it is senseless to demand that criminals respecthuman rights given that violating these rights is the essence of criminality.With regard to the State, the demand is just the opposite: that the Stateexist as the repository of legitimate violencethat is, violence used to protectthe public and to respect human rihts. In this sense, State disrespect forhuman rights is even more deplorable. Of course, the pain may be thesame for the victim . . .But if we agree with Uprimmy, why call attention to violations ofthe security of persons when committed by criminals within theframework of reflection on human rights? Because the insecurityprovoked by criminality creates an atmosphere replete with potential foraccepance of violations committed by the State itself! On this point, it isnecessary to turn to a few reflections based on research data that give usfood for thought.Several studies on criminality and forms of punishment havenoted that public opinion is not uniform but rather subject to fluctuationoften based on particularly revolting crimes. Let us examine, for example,the death penalty. In September 1991, a survey by the leading Datafolharesearch center found that 46% of Brazilians interviewed supported thedeath penalty, while 43% opposed, a virtual tie in statistical terms. A yearand a half later, in February 1993, the same institute repeated the survey,this time shortly after two high profile crimes shocked Brazilian publicopinionthe murder of actress Daniela Perez in Rio de Janeiro and thekidnapping and killing of Miriam Brandão, a girl in Belo Horizonte. Thesecond survey demonstrated a significant shift: 55% of those interviewedexpressed support for the death penalty while only 38% opposed the44draconian measure.Another example, closer to our analysis. In October 1999, in the44. Luis Francisco Carvalho Filho, O que é Pena de Morte (São Paulo: Brasiliense, 1995), 68.