Brazil: Dilma Rousseff to receive apology for torture

Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff is among a group of people to receive apologies and reparations from the state government of Rio de Janeiro for torture suffered during the military dictatorship.

120 people are to be compensated in June, according to a spokesperson. Brazilian daily O Globo reports that 244 people will be issued reparations by 2013. Of the 1,113 victims of the regime who had filed claims, 895 have had their cases approved by the relevant commission and 650 have already been compensated.

The president is said to be donating the money - BRL 20,000 or around $10,000 - to the organisation Torture Nunca Mais. 

"It is an acknowledgement of those who fought for democracy. The money does not solve anything. What is important is the recognition of the state. We cannot forget the past," said Andrea Sepulveda, head of Defence and Promotion of Human Rights in the Rio government.

O Globo also notes that the president has filed similar claims in the states of São Paulo and Minas Gerais, where she was interrogated, tried, judged and sentenced. Rousseff was imprisoned in 1970, served three years, and was tortured.

Brazil: An Apology for Torture (NY Times)
Brazil: Rousseff to receive apology, compensation for torture during dictatorship (Global Post)
Dilma Rousseff será indenizada pelo governo do Rio (O Globo)