Arns Commission condemns police violence at USP and denounces attack on university autonomy

The Arns Commission strongly condemns the police crackdown on students protesting the dismantling of university assistance policies. Images and accounts made public show the use of tear gas, physical assaults, and intimidation tactics that are incompatible with Brazil’s constitutional order and with university autonomy.

The police abuses observed both inside and outside the university, carried out under the pretext of suppressing student mobilizations, deepen the escalation of institutional violence taking place in the state of São Paulo.

Public universities are spaces for debate, organization, and freedom of expression. Student demands must not be treated as a police matter.

The Arns Commission expresses its solidarity with the students who were assaulted and reaffirms its permanent commitment to defending human rights, democratic freedoms, and the right to public education.