14/12/21
On 13 December 2021, the assistant judge of the Criminal Court of Redenção, in the State of Pará, denied the request presented by the defence of the lawyer and human rights defender José Vargas Sobrinho Junior, deciding for the maintenance of the house arrest. In addition, an evidentiary hearing was scheduled for 25 March 2022.
José Vargas Sobrinho Junior is a human rights defender, university teacher and a human rights lawyer in Redenção, Pará. Vargas is well known for his work on important cases for the defence of human rights in Brazil, such as the victims of the Pau D’Arco massacre, landless workers against JBS and the Kayapó indigenous people against mining companies in Cumaru do Norte.
On 1 January 2021, he was arrested at his home in the municipality of Redenção, Pará, based on a criminal procedure characterized by high level of arbitrariness and weak evidence. It has been more than 11 months since the grassroots lawyer and human rights defender José Vargas Sobrinho Junior was detained. Since 25 January 2021, the human rights defender has been under house arrest.
Between 8 and 10 October 2021, Front Line Defenders conducted a solidarity visit to the lawyer. During the event, it was learned that the situation to which José Vargas Sobrinho Junior is subjected represents an obstacle to his work. By not having access to his telephone and work email, and by not being able to personally follow up on his clients’ cases, the human rights defender has been prevented from continuing his work in defence of human rights defenders. In June 2021, José Vargas Sobrinho Junior had to resign from acting as a lawyer in the Public Civil Action on behalf of the Kayapó indigenous people against the mining companies devastating their territory.
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https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/case/human-rights-lawyer-jose-vargas-sobrinho-junior-detained
https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/pt/case/human-rights-lawyer-jose-vargas-sobrinho-junior-detained (PORTUGUES)
https://anovademocracia.com.br/noticias/16921-pau-d-arco-mandantes-impunes-advogado-preso
https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/fr/case/human-rights-lawyer-jose-vargas-sobrinho-junior-detained (FRANCAIS)