Body considers insufficient survey of 158 accounts from the 19th century and expands historical investigation
The Federal Public Ministry failed the survey carried out by Caixa Econômica Federal on financial records of enslaved people in the 19th century and ordered the expansion of the investigation into the destination of the deposited resources. The investigation deals with the institution’s role in managing values belonging to enslaved people in the period that preceded the end of slavery in Brazil.
The investigation began after a representation presented by the entity Quilombo Raça e Classe and is part of the MPF’s actions in actions linked to the right to memory and historical truth.
According to Caixa, 158 savings accounts opened by enslaved people were identified in its historical collection. The MPF, however, assessed that the survey is limited and does not clarify central questions about the allocation of resources or the institution’s performance during that period. The organization states that there are around 14 thousand historical documents still without archival treatment.
The deputy regional attorney for Citizens’ Rights in Rio de Janeiro, Julio Araujo, declared that the analysis carried out so far represents “an initial breakthrough”but does not close the investigation.
“CEF’s effort to respond to the recommendation is healthy, but insufficient, as no archival work or indication of a multidisciplinary team was identified”he stated.
According to him, the investigation was focused on savings accounts and needs to be expanded to include current account books and other documents from the historical collection.
Here is what the MPF charges Caixa:
- details of the methodology used in the survey;
- identification of the team responsible for the research;
- indication of the number of current account books in the collection;
- expansion of document analysis;
- preservation, organization and digitization of historical archives.
The MPF ordered Caixa to present the information within 15 days. The order also provides for the sending of letters to the National Archives and to Institute of National Historical and Artistic Heritage to carry out technical visits designed to assess the historical interest of documents and supervise their preservation.
“We are dealing with a topic that involves historical memory and institutional responsibility. It is essential to guarantee full access to documents and consistent analysis”declared Julio Araujo.
to historian Keila Grinbergwhich collaborates with the civil inquiry conducted by the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Rio de Janeiro, also assessed that the current survey is not sufficient to understand Caixa’s relationship with slavery. According to her, the analysis must cover all available documentation and require crossing historical data, since, at the end of the 19th century, freed people were not always identified by color or origin in official records.
The MPF’s work with Caixa occurs in parallel with a similar investigation involving the Bank of Brazil. In 2023, the bank publicly acknowledged its historical debt linked to slavery and apologized to the black population after questions presented by researchers and the MPF.
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