Presidential candidate Renan Santos of the Missão party proposes adopting the legal theory known in Brazil as the “criminal law of the enemy” to combat organized crime factions, according to his government plan reported by CNN Brasil. The proposal would create different legal regimes for ordinary citizens and people proven to belong to criminal organizations.
The theory distinguishes between “citizen criminal law,” which preserves full legal guarantees, and “enemy criminal law,” which permits preventive measures and harsher penalties against members of designated factions. The plan says the distinction would remain compatible with Brazil’s 1988 Constitution because all defendants would still face legal proceedings. It compares the difference to the legal distinction between convicted and acquitted people.
This is based on single-source reporting from CNN Brasil.
Proposed Antifaction Law
The plan says the system would begin with successive declarations of a state of defense in areas under faction control. Those measures would enable territorial operations aimed at restoring state authority. A subsequent Antifaction Law would establish the main legal framework.
Among the proposed measures are:
- Allowing police to petition courts to ban criminal organizations based on evidence dossiers.
- Prohibiting faction symbols and coordinated activity by members.
- Dissolving public or private entities infiltrated by organized crime.
- Removing civil and political rights and restricting movement for people proven to be associated with classified factions.
- Concentrating jurisdiction in specialized courts, with judges selected under strict technical criteria and given special protection.
- Reversing the burden of proof in asset confiscation cases, so faction members would have to prove that their property was lawfully obtained.
Under the proposal, affiliating with a faction would itself constitute a crime. Appeals would not automatically suspend decisions, while court proceedings would face short, non-extendable deadlines: 30 days in trial courts and 60 days in appellate courts.
Federal Security Structure
Santos also proposes a National Classification Commission made up of federal agencies with immediate administrative powers. The plan calls for a strengthened Group for Special Action Against Criminal Organizations (GAECO), a coordinated public-prosecutor structure, as well as broader legal protection for public officials involved in enforcement.
All cases linked to criminal factions would be transferred to federal jurisdiction. The federal government could intervene in states where factions exercise territorial control and deploy the Armed Forces under Garantia da Lei e da Ordem (GLO), Brazil’s constitutional framework for military support of public-security operations. In territories classified as faction-controlled, the proposal would authorize the use of heavy force.
The plan identifies two additional priorities: restoring state control over ports, airports and borders, and changing criminal law while introducing drones for routine patrols and facial-recognition systems to help solve crimes. CNN Brasil’s report did not include a response from opposing candidates or legal specialists.
Missão must formally register the candidacy and government plan with Brazil’s electoral authorities by August 15, along with the other presidential parties.