Politics

Lula Announces Support for Lowering Criminal Responsibility Age to 16

By Tiago Rogero

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said he now supports lowering the age of criminal responsibility for “heinous” crimes from 18 to 16. The statement was made during a Thursday night interview with TV Globo, just over a week before the presidential runoff. Lula’s opponent, far‑right senator Flávio Bolsonaro, remains slightly ahead in the polls after winning the first round. Bolsonaro and his father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, have long advocated reducing the age to 14, while Lula and his party have traditionally opposed the change. In recent opinion polls, 80% of Brazilians support lowering the age. Lula explained that, as a Brazilian citizen, he favors lowering the age for any heinous crime and confirmed that he means lowering it to 16. Heinous crimes under Brazilian law include murder, rape, falsification of medicines and drug trafficking – the latter accounting for about a quarter of the 816,000 inmates in Brazil. Human rights groups and security experts have criticized proposals to lower the age, arguing they do little to address violence and may increase recruitment into organized crime in overcrowded prisons. Earlier that Thursday, the Senate discussed the proposal. The Episcopal Conference of Brazil criticized it for not addressing the causes of violence and warned that placing young people prematurely in prison can deepen cycles of violence and exclusion, undermining rehabilitation. Columnist Josias de Souza noted that Lula’s reversal is a significant transformation, saying the president has turned his stance on public security inside out. Lula has intensified efforts to overcome Bolsonaro’s 2.2 million‑vote lead by appealing to independents and undecided voters, securing congressional approval for a shorter working week, debt relief for micro‑entrepreneurs, and a promise of free public transport on weekends.