HRC57: A mother's urgent call for justice, transparency and accountability

On 3 October 2024, Barbara G. Reynolds, Chair of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, presented a report addressing the implications of  digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence (AI) on human rights, with a particular focus on how these technologies contribute to racial inequality, especially among people of African descent.

For example, AI-driven facial recognition software has been criticised for its disproportionate impact on people of African descent, misidentifying them at significantly higher rates compared to other groups. This has led to wrongful arrests and other forms of discrimination.

The report presented by Barbara G. Reynolds resonates deeply with Rute Fiuza’s statement, who is a member of Mães da Bahia collective. Both the report and Rute’s personal story underscore the pervasive systemic racism that disproportionately affects people of African descent. 

‘A policy of extermination’

Rute Fiuza shared the harrowing story of her son, Davi Fiuza, who was forcibly disappeared by 23 military police officers in Bahia in October 2014, during the second round of national elections. Davi, only 16 years old at the time, was taken by the military police and has not been seen since. 

Rute’s testimony powerfully highlighted the systemic violence faced by Black families in Brazil, which she described as a ‘policy of extermination’. Her son’s disappearance is not an isolated case, it is part of a larger pattern of State violence against marginalised communities, which has resulted in more than 82,000 forced disappearances in Brazil despite the country’s democratic status.

Rute is calling for justice, transparency and accountability from the Brazilian government regarding the forced disappearance of her son. She demanded that the State provide information about the whereabouts of her son’s body so that he can receive a dignified funeral, highlighting the right of families to know the truth. 

Beyond that, she calls for broader racial and social justice in Brazil, underlining the need to address systemic violence and oppression faced by people of African descent. 

Last, Rute Fiuza urges the creation of a safer environment for human rights defenders, pointing out that families like hers face threats and intimidation simply for speaking out against the injustices they endure. 

Watch the statement here: 

Read the full joint statement below: 

My name is Rute Fiuza and I am Davi Fiuza’s mother. I am a member of the Collective of Family Members of Victims of Terrorism by the Brazilian State. My son was 16 years old when he was taken from his home by 23 military police officers in the state of Bahia, Brazil, in October 2014. Two months earlier, in August 2014, Bahia witnessed the torture, execution and vilification of the body of Giovani Mascarenhas.

We mothers have our cries silenced by the security forces, by constant threats to our lives and the lives of our young Black men. My son was taken from me, but today I am his voice, a voice that cries out for elucidation, for racial and social justice. More than anything, I demand that the Brazilian State tell me where my son’s body is so that he can have a dignified funeral and that the State ensure a secure environment for human rights defenders working on racial justice.

Davi joined the statistics of more than 82,000 forced disappearances in the midst of democracy. There is a policy of extermination of Black people in Brazil. We have never had access to information about where my son’s body is. President, I have turned my mourning into a struggle for justice, just like the mothers of the young people who were decimated in the Cabula and Gamboa massacre.

Thank you.