Abstract
The 20 years of the Organic Law on Social Assistance is an interesting moment to approach current increasingly important subjects in Brazilian society—as the international migrations and immigrants’ rights—and its relation with this important document of guarantee of rights. In the social assistance benefits field, a subject that stands out in contemporary debates is the concession of Continued Benefit Payments (BPC) to the resident immigrant population in Brazil. The constant violations of this social right, illustrated by the request denials on the concession of social assistance benefit motivated by the solicitant nationality, despite the fulfillment of the legal requirements, will be the central concern of this article.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
- 1.
“Only 37 % of migration around the world is from developing to developed countries. Most migration occurs between countries with the same level of development: about 60 % of migrant move between developing countries or between developed countries (the remaining 3 % refer to traveling from developed to developing countries)” (PNUD 2009, p. 21). The large part of people’s displacement, however, does not occur from one country to another, but within countries. The estimative is that the number of internal migrants is four times greater than the international migration (PNUD 2009).
- 2.
The social and economic conditions by which immigrants live in their home countries give us elements to affirm that migration is not always an option held in a context of total freedom, but the only possible alternative at some point in their lives.
- 3.
There are agreements on the issue of migration signed within Mercosul: the Agreements on Residence for Nationals of Member States of Mercosul, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador, in effect since 2009 and promulgated in Brazil through Decrees No. 6,964/2009 and 6,975/2009. These agreements favor the immigrants from signatory countries to regularize their immigration status in a simple manner, without employment contract requirements or qualifications.
- 4.
The Constitutive Treaty of Unasul, signed in Brasilia on May 23, in 2008, and promulgated by Decree No. 7,667/2012, in its Article 3 refers to the construction of a South American citizenship as one of its specific objectives: “i) to consolidate South American identity recognizing the rights of nationals of a member State resident in any other member State, with the aim of attaining a South American citizenship.”
- 5.
The data, whose source is the Department of Foreigners of the Ministry of Justice, are administrative records. The purpose of this compilation is to control residence permits and the compliance of legal provisions at national level. These records do not provide information to enable analysis of the entire population present in the territory, especially on those in irregular migratory situation. In addition, the limitation of access to this information only allowed finding numbers for certain countries in South America.
- 6.
For example: O Globo. O sonho brasileiro. 30 out 2011, Caderno de Economia, p. 35; and Folha De São Paulo. Brasil recebe 57 % mais mão de obra estrangeira. 05 fev 2012. Available in: http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/mercado/1044123-brasil-recebe-57-mais-mao-de-obra-estrangeira.shtm
- 7.
See:http://portal.mj.gov.br/main.asp?View={A5F550A5-5425-49CE-8E88-E104614AB866}&BrowserType=NN&LangID=pt-br¶ms=itemID%3D{BA915BD3-AC38-4F6C-81A1-AC4AF88BE2D0}%3B&UIPartUID={2218FAF9-5230-431C-A9E3-E780D3E67DFE}.
- 8.
In February 2013, the number of South American foreigners who had temporary stay or permanent residency amounted to: 48,252 Argentines, 76,460 Bolivians, 27,904 Chileans, 9661 Colombians, 21,189 Paraguayans, 21,493 Peruvians, and 32,359 Uruguayans. Source: National System of Foreigners Registration—SINCRE, Department of Foreign Affairs—Ministry of Justice.
- 9.
The LOAS has changed in some devices by Law No. 9,720/1998, Law No. 12,435/2011 and Law No. 12,470/2011.
- 10.
Decree No. 6,214/2007 revoked the former Decree 1,744/1995 and has undergone some changes from Decree No. 6,564/2008 and No. 7,617/2011.
- 11.
On the other hand, Marques (2012, p. 10) advocates that “just assuming that assistance was only ‘citizens’ right’ [Article 1, LOAS], and citizen is a born or naturalized Brazilian, Decree no. 1,744/95 explicit left the impossibility of the foreigner who was not naturalized get the benefit [BPC]. In this direction, accordingly to the Article 4 of the mentioned Decree […] this same provision remains in the existing Decree that regulates the LOAS (Decree No. 6,214/07).” Such an interpretation, in our view, implies detract from the essence of the right at issue.
- 12.
Civil Action No. 0021229-88.2004.4.03.6100 dealing with the BPC for foreigners not naturalized and resident in Brazil.
- 13.
Resolution INSS/PR No. 435, of March 18, 1997, revoked the INSS Resolution/PR No. 324 of December 15, 1995.
- 14.
Federal Public Prosecution heard the INSS—Administrative Procedure No 1.34.001.000473/2003-14-, in order to ascertain federal government’s conduct, through the INSS, in the BPC appreciation of application when formulated by foreigners—reaping manifestation from the General Coordination of Benefits and its executive management in São Paulo (Center, East, West, South, and North) to request information about the requirements for granting the assistance benefit.
- 15.
Decree No. 21,076 of 02/24/1932, signed by President Getúlio Vargas.
- 16.
The idea of closed borders, fortresses, does not serve to explain much of the current migration policies, because for some the borders are open and there are incentives (even though there are a number of conditions that must be met and respected), for others not. In many of these differentiations reproduce racial and colonial hierarchies, see (Rigo 2011).
- 17.
About migratory movements under the perspective of the right to health, see Waldman (2011).
- 18.
On the question of the fight for the education access to immigrants in the State of São Paulo, see Waldman (2012).
References
Almeida TP (2013) As imigrantes sul-americanas em São Paulo: o trabalho feminino na construção de trajetórias transnacionais. Dissertação de Mestrado, PROLAM-USP
Anderson B (2008) Comunidades Imaginadas. Reflexões sobre a origem e a difusão do nacionalismo (trans: Bottman D). Companhia das Letras, São Paulo
Baeninger R (2012) O Brasil na rota das migrações latino-americanas. In: Baeninger R (ed) Imigração Boliviana no Brasil. Núcleo de Estudos de População—NEPO/Unicamp; FAPESP; CNPQ; UNFPA, Campinas, pp 9–18
Bobbio N (2004). A era dos direitos (trans: Carlos Nelson Coutinho). Nova ed. Elsevier, Rio de Janeiro
Boubeker A (2007). L’héritage de l’immigration postcoloniale comme expérience vécue. Amnis (online) – Revue de civilisation contemporaine Europes/Amériques, 7
Castles S (2004) Why migration policies fail. Ethnic Racial Studies 27(2):205–227
Confederación Sindical de Trabajadores/as de las Americas (CSA) (2008) Las Migraciones Internacionales en las Américas. Confederación Sindical de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras de las Américas, São Paulo
da Silva JA (2004) Curso de Direito Constitucional Positivo, 23rd edn. Malheiros, São Paulo
de Carvalho JM (2011) Cidadania no Brasil: o longo caminho, 14ª Ed. Civilização brasileira, Rio de Janeiro
de Castro CAP, Lazzari JB (2008) Manual de Direito Previdenciário. Conceito Editorial, Florianópolis
de Freitas PT (2010) Imigração e Trabalho: Determinantes históricas da formação de um circuito de subcontratação de imigrantes bolivianos para o trabalho em oficinas de costura na cidade de São Paulo. Trabalho apresentando no XVII Encontro Nacional de Estudos Populacionais, ABEP
Ferreira CER (2011) O imigrante como um subversivo prático-político, possibilidade de um “novo mundo” – o projeto universal-cosmopolita dos Direitos Humanos em contraposição à Soberania territorial. Revista Emancipação, Ponta Grossa 11(2):253–266
Glick-Schiller N (2009) A global perspective on transnational migration: theorizing migration without methodological nationalism. In: COMPAS Working paper series no 67, University of Oxford
Grimson A (2011) Doce equívocos sobre las migraciones. In Latinoamericanos en tránsito: Migración, mitos y fronteras. Revista Nueva Sociedad 233:34–43
Hewinson K, Kallerberg AL (2012) Precarious work and flexibilization in south and Southeast Asia. Am Behav Sci 57(4):507–530
Hobsbawn EJ (1990) Nações e nacionalismo desde 1780. Programa, mito e realidade. 1990. Paz e Terra, Rio de Janeiro
Marques CGM (2012) O Direito do estrangeiro residente no país ao Benefício Assistencial de Prestação Continuada. Revista Internacional de Direito e Cidadania 12:09–18
Mezzadra S (2006) Diritto di Fuga. Migrazioni, cittadinanza, globalizzazione. Ombre Corte, Verona
Mezzadra S (2013) Movimenti indisciplinati. Migrazioni, migranti e discipline scientifiche. Ombre Corte, Verona
Moulin C (2011) Eppur si muove: mobilidade humana, cidadania e globalização. Contexto Internacional 33(1): 9–17
Portes A (2011) Migración y desarrollo: un intento de conciliar perspectivas opuestas. In Latinoamericanos en tránsito: Migración, mitos y fronteras. Revista Nueva Sociedad 233:44–67
Programa das Nações Unidas para o Desenvolvimento (PNUD) (2009) Relatório Humano de Desenvolvimento Humano 2009, Ultrapassar Barreiras: Mobilidade e desenvolvimento humanos. Programa das Nações Unidas para o Desenvolvimento, New York
Quaglioni D (2004) La sovranità. Laterza, Bari
Rigo E (2011) Citizens despite borders: challenges to the territorial order of Europe. In: Squire V (ed) The contested politics of mobility: border zones and irregularity. Routledge, Abingdon
Sayad A (1998) A imigração ou os paradoxos da alteridade. Editora da Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo
Silva SA (1995) Costurando Sonhos: Etnografia de um grupo de imigrantes bolivianos que trabalham no ramo da costura em São Paulo. Dissertação de Mestrado, PROLAM—USP
Silva CF (2008) Trabalho Informal e Redes de Subcontratação: Dinâmicas Urbanas da Indústria de Confecções em São Paulo. Mestrado em Sociologia, Universidade de São Paulo
The Binational Migration Institute (2013) A continued humanitarian crisis at the border. Undocumented border crosser deaths recorded by the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner, 1990–2012, The University of Arizona, June
Truzzi O (2008) Redes em processos migratórios. Tempo Social, Revista de Sociologia da USP 20(1):199–218
Vertovec S (2004) Migrant transnationalism and modes of transformation. Int Migr Rev 38(3):970–1001
Waldman TC (2011) Movimentos migratórios sob a perspectiva do direito à saúde: Imigrantes bolivianas em São Paulo. Revista de Direito Sanitário, São Paulo 12(1):90–114
Waldman TC (2012) O acesso à educação escolar de imigrantes em São Paulo: a trajetória de um direito. 2012. 236f. Dissertação (Mestrado) – Faculdade de Direito, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Baraldi, C.B.F., de Almeida, T.P., Waldman, T.C. (2016). Immigrants’ Right to Continued Benefit Payments: A Citizenship Question. In: Serau Junior, M., Caetano Costa, J. (eds) Assistance Benefits in Brazil. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27046-3_13
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27046-3_13
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-27044-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-27046-3
eBook Packages: Law and CriminologyLaw and Criminology (R0)