Lowering age of criminal responsibility

It’s Saturday morning and the day is beautiful, sunny and hot. A common day in Brazil. The park is crowded, and many people are exercising, riding bikes, and enjoying the day. Two friends are sitting under the shade of a tree. Both study law and they are classmates. John is looking at his cellphone. Matthew is paying attention to a football game played by teens.

“Hey John, can you imagine these kids in jail with adults?” Matthew asks thoughtfully. “You know that congress wants to approve a law allowing this, right?”

“Yeah, I know,” replys John, “but I don’t see a problem…”

“Really?” Matthew says amazed. “Do you you know that only 1% of all crimes are committed by people under 18?”

“If it’s only 1%, the law shouldn’t be a problem. The government can save some money without the juvenile institutio-”

“And what about human rights?” interrupts Matthew. “Those institutions are officially called “socio-educational” centers. They are committed to providing education, vocational training, and rehabilitative services. With this, teenagers have the chance to start a new life, find a job, and quit a life crime.”

“We all know that these institutions hosting juvenile offenders can’t re-socialize their inmates. They often come out of there with a promotion in crime.”

“Come on, man!” exclaims Matthew. “The problem is not violence, the problem is social inequality!”

“If a teenager kills someone in your family,” ponders John, “would you change your mind?”

“All this effort putting minors in jail should be effort keeping them out of there,” argues Matthew.

“Hm, yeah man, maybe you’re right!” acknowledged John. “Eye for an eye makes the whole world blind, right?”

“Yeah, that’s the point!” yells Matthew.

“Actually, everybody knows that in Brazil we have more than 527,000 prisoners and a lack of vacancies in prisons for at least 181,000 prisoners,” adds John. “It’s always good to debate with you!”