O percurso do “repúdio ao terrorismo” na Assembleia Constituinte (1987-88): a Comissão Afonso Arinos e as controvérsias ausentes

Abstract

This paper analyses how the repudiation of terrorism was addressed in the discussions during the Brazilian Constituent Assembly. The theoretical-historical framework is the array of controversies regarding the political agenda of combating terrorism that had been guiding discussions at that time, including the intertwined relationship between human rights protection and terrorism, punitivism and the absence of a clear-cut definition of the crime. Although one of the main aspects of the Constitution is the democratic way it was designed – as there was a wide range of political proposals, ideological debates and significant participation of the people –, constituents resorted to the draft of the Afonso Arinos Commission to copy the clause about terrorism. Thus, this paper analyses what were some of those controversies over terrorism under discussion worldwide that Brazilian constituents bypassed when they resorted to the draft of the Arinos Commission to coin the article about the principles of international relations.