Barroso, Newly Retired From Brazil’s Top Court, Urges Intelligence‑Led Fight Against Organized Crime

Overview

• Speaking in São Paulo at the Abramge congress, the former STF justice said public security is not left or right and stressed that poor communities need protection.
• He called for an intelligence‑driven strategy that monitors borders and vulnerable areas while reserving confrontation for cases deemed indispensable.
• Barroso urged authorities to follow the money and pursue those chiefly responsible for organized crime rather than relying on force‑first operations.
• Citing Brazil’s high violence and a Rio megaoperation with at least 119 dead, he argued that planning and intelligence deliver better results than brute force.
• He coupled his security prescriptions with appeals for electoral reforms, improved fiscal management and defenses of democratic norms, and he welcomed Justice Ministry proposals now before Congress.