The Pacifying Police Units of the State of Rio de Janeiro (UPPs): Incremental Innovation or Police Reform?
| Date | 01 May 2016 |
| Published date | 01 May 2016 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1002/pad.1754 |
THE PACIFYING POLICE UNITS OF THE STATE OF RIO DE JANEIRO
(UPPS): INCREMENTAL INNOVATION OR POLICE REFORM?
ROGERIO F. PINTO*AND MARIA SCARLET DO CARMO
International Consultant-FGV Projetos, Brazil
SUMMARY
This article considers the experience of Unidades de Polícia Pacificadora (UPPs) (Pacifying Police Units) of the State of Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil, as an innovative form of policing designed to deal primarily with high crime rate in “favelas.”It also attempts to
ascertain the extent to which the UPPs reflect a strategy for police reform. It does so by (i) reviewing the security crisis which
engendered the UPPs as well as their predecessors, describing the socio-economic hardships of the favelas, further aggravated
by high crime rates; (ii) describing the institutional and political environment giving rise to the policing policy underpinning the
UPPs, and (iii) by assessing this innovation against a backdrop of systemic police reform models, singling out missing elements
to constitute a true police system reform. This review provides a record of police policy of successive state governments,
showing that the adoption of the UPPs followed a reactive political pattern while falling short of the requirements for proactively
deliberate and comprehensive reform. Contrary to most of the guiding reform principles and elements discussed, policing reform
in the State of Rio de Janeiro has indeed been bound by innovative incrementalism, following a pendular pattern, with little
sustainability and a record of fluctuating achievements. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Additional supporting information may be found in the online version of this article at the publisher’s web-site.
key words—UPPs (Unidades de Polícia Pacificadora); security; “favela”; police system reform; policing policy
INTRODUCTION
Although not amongthe Latin American countries with highest crimerates
1
, historically ratesin Brazil are high when
compared worldwide. In 2014 Brazil recorded 29 homicides per 100000 inhabitants, much higher than acceptable by
the World HealthOrganization (WHO): 10 homicides per100 000 inhabitants per year.
2
Accordingto ISP the Instituto
de Segurança Pública, in 2013 Rio de Janeiro was the eight most violent city of Brazil—with a homiciderate of 26.4
per 100 000 inhabitants—and has over the years earned a worldwide reputation as a dangerous city with crime rates
also well above WHO standards
3
. Crime in Rio is endemic in the shanty towns (slums) known locally as “favelas”
4
and is generally associated with drug trafficking and drug use.
5
By and large its victims are their residents,
*Correspondence to: rgrpinto@yahoo.com
Dr. Pinto holds a Doctorate in Public Administration from the University of Southern California, with studies at Harvard University and the
University of North Carolina. For several decades he was a staff and manager at the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank
in Washington DC. On his return to Brazil he was an associate faculty at the EBAPE of Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV) in Rio de Janeiro.
Dr. do Carmo has a Doctorate in Public Administration from EBAPE, FGV.
1
Latin American countries with highest homicide rates p/100k population in 2012/2011 are in order: Honduras with 84.3, Venezuela with 53.7,
El Salvador with 39.8, Colombia with 30.8, and Brazil with 25.2. In 2014 the homicide rate in Brazil increased to 29 p/100 k pop (source:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_intentional_homicide_rate. Access in 18 Jan 2016).
2
According to “Mapa de Violência”, Brazil with 2.8 per cent of the world population accounts for 11 per cent of homicides.
3
For WHO a region or country with annual homicide rates above 10 for 100 k population are considered to be criminally endemic.
4
Meaning shanty town or slum, “favela”in Portuguese is derogatory to designate the areas inhabited by poor and underprivileged squatters
who over time acquired de facto ownership of plots. The currently accepted term is “comunidades”or communities. The term originates from
the name of a flower endemic in the location of the first settlers said to be the destitute remnant rebels and combatants of the Canudos conspir-
acy in Bahia that sought refuge in the outskirts Rio de Janeiro in the XIX century (Perlman, 2010).
5
The city of Rio de Janeiro is the capital of Rio de Janeiro State and accounts for most of the state’s crimes. On a scale of 120, the “Numbeo”
security site gives the city of Rio a rating of 74.61. However, according to O GLOBO (O Globo, 2015), the State of Rio in 2015 had the lowest
homicide rate since 1996.
public administration and development
Public Admin. Dev. 36, 121–131 (2016)
Published online in Wiley Online Library
(wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI: 10.1002/pad.1754
Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
To continue reading
Request your trial