The government (PT) approved this Tuesday (30) the listing of the former DOPS (Department of Political and Social Order) building, after the (Institute of National Historical and Artistic Heritage).
The Ministry of Culture’s ordinance was published after approval by the Institute’s Advisory Council, which understood the need for action due to the building’s historical, artistic and architectural values, in addition to being considered a landmark in social and political struggles in defense of Brazilian democracy.
According to the federal government, as a result of the approval, the building will be registered in the Historical and Fine Arts Books.
The building housed the headquarters of the Dops from 1962 to 1975 and the Desps (Special Police Station for Political and Social Security), during the Estado Novo, between 1933 and 1944.
At the time known as the Police Palace, the place was a frequent destination for prisoners during dictatorial periods. According to historical records, arrests used to be accompanied by interrogation and torture sessions.
Among the names who were arrested at the scene are engineer Raul Amaro Nin Ferreira, killed after torture sessions in 1971, and PCB (Brazilian Communist Party) activist Neide Alves dos Santos, killed in 1976 in São Paulo, after passing through Rio.
Previously, during the Vargas Era, Nise da Silveira, Olga Benário, Carlos Marighella, Apolônio de Carvalho, Graciliano Ramos and Luiz Carlos Prestes passed through prison.
Opened in November 1910, the building was designed by architect Heitor de Mello, one of the main representatives of eclecticism in Rio de Janeiro. It was built in the context of other urban transformations promoted during Pereira Passos’ mayorship.
Previously, the building had already been listed at the state level in 1986. The first request for federal listing occurred in 2001. In 2024, the Rio de Janeiro Public Prosecutor’s Office opened an investigation with the aim of seeking solutions for the property, including the implementation of a memory center.
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