Introduction

The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), which operated between 2004 and 2017, was led by Brazilian generals. When we filmed in Bois Neuf, a passing MINUSTAH convoy stopped in one of the squares and Brazilian troops poured out, walked around for several minutes and then drove off. They were displaying their presence – organised, armed and in control. We were curious about their role in Haiti and began to research their record in their home country, aware that a dictatorship had ruled Brazil from 1964 to 1986. Brazil has the highest death rate of civilians by state violence in the world and the statistics in Rio de Janeiro state were shocking, with an average of five people killed by the state each day. Siobhán Wills and I followed this up and began by making contacts with NGOs and community groups. When a grant application was successful, we appointed a team, including our indispensable research assistant, Juliana Resende, who became so central that her title changed to associate producer.

Background

General Heleno, MINUSTAH's first force commander, was later appointed as Brazil's Minister for Institutional Security under President Bolsonaro’s government. Bolsonaro was clearly impressed with his role in Haiti, arguing, ‘We are at war. Haiti was also at war. (In Haiti) the rule was: you find an element with a gun, you shoot, and then you see what happened. You solve the problem’. While Haiti was not at war, it was indeed the case that the Brazilian troops were permitted to ‘solve the problem’ by a policy of shoot to kill. It also helped that both men regarded the dictatorship between 1964 and 1986 as necessary. Other generals who had served in Haiti were also appointed to Bolsonaro's government; Reuters journalist, Gabriel Stargardter, writes,