Operation Car Wash violates the law to create “presumption of guilt” in former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s case, stated anthropologist and Harvard University Professor John Comaroff, 71.
Expert in ‘lawfare,’ term defined by the use of the Law for political purposes, the South African professor has been consulted by Lula’s attorneys, who have adopted this concept.
He defends the replacement of Judge Sergio Moro to end questioning on whether he is exempt regarding Lula’s case.
“When private conversations are leaked, even if there are 20 people involved in it, if Lula is among them, you know that it is about him the press will talk. This is ‘lawfare’. You manipulate the Law and create presumption of guilt”, Comaroff added.
In August, the Brazilian Federal Supreme Court considered unlawful some of the tapping of the former president’s telephone conversations, for it was done after the authorized period had ended.
However, Moro had already made all conversations public, which caused controversy due to Lula’s way of talking and, especially due to his dialogue with the then president Dilma Rousseff, who gave the impression to that would nominate Lula as minister to ensure him legal immunity.
Comaroff also questioned the tapping of Lula’s attorney office’s telephone, which he classified as “very unlawful in the whole world”.
“It is not possible to pretend that one did not expect that these measures against Lula would not have any impact. This demonstrates a desire to accuse him”, said the professor. “It seems that Lula has been receiving a different treatment regarding legal aspects in the operation”, he criticized.
Comaroff was consulted by the former president’s attorneys for being a “lawfare” expert – professor said he will not be providing services to Lula’s defense.
“I am trying to understand the case. My colleagues here at Harvard cannot understand it. There are facts that disturb the international audience”, stated Comaroff. “The country has a robust legal system. There is no need to violate the law”.
In view of the defense’s formal questioning regarding Moro’s action, the anthropologist said that Moro’s removal from the case would be a demonstration of political exemption in Operation Car Wash.
“Why not? Certainty, there are many other qualified judges in Brazil. In principle, if you want to maintain the legal system as clean as possible, you cannot miss the opportunity to avoid conflicts of interest or any misconduct”, he argued.
The former president’s attorneys have filed more than one complaint against Moro and Operation Car Wash task force before the Brazilian Justice System for what they considered abuses, such as forbidding them to have access to the full proceedings related to Lula’s investigation.
The former president is a defendant in three lawsuits for the practice of corruption and other crimes.
His defense has also filed an appeal with the United Nations, which will evaluate the case.
LACK OF EVIDENCE
According to the professor, experts and public opinion leaders outside Brazil question the consistency of the evidence used by the Operation Cara Wash task force against the former president.
“I want to be careful, because one cannot make any legal judgment without having all aspects clarified. I have no idea whether Lula is guilty or not and I suspect that no one will know that before an action based on evidence is presented”, he stated.
Telling by the pieces of evidence we have seen up to now – the types of bribe, the apartment, etc. – everything is very, very uncertain. The point Judge Moro has made can be considered anything but conclusive for what has been reported so far”, he said.
Comaroff linked the accusations against Lula to Dilma Rousseff’s impeachment, which also “caused a big discussion regarding its legitimacy, not procedural but political”, he reported.
“Who benefits from the attacks against Lula also emerges as an object of questioning in the international arena. I am not judging, but there are several questions, mainly regarding the role of the Judiciary Branch in this case, since it seems eager to convict him”, he added.
The South African Professor suggested that prosecutors and judges could possibly benefit from the ‘spectacularization’ of Operation Car Wash, as Lula’s defense points out.
“In theory, ‘lawfare’ may benefit prosecutors who like to appear as heroic defenders of the law or judges seeking promotion in the Judiciary Branch”, he said.
Source: Website Folha de São Paulo
By Thais Bilenky
November 04, 2016
http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/poder/2016/11/1829175-professor-de-harvard-ve-presuncao-de-culpa-contra-lula-na-lava-jato.shtml