Rousseff awarded torture compensation - Gayo Lues

“Mrs. Rousseff will donate the $ 10,000 she will receive in June from the Rio government for her jailing under the military regime (1964-85) to the group Torture Never Again,” a spokesman for the presidential office said in a statement issued on Friday, AFP reported.

Rousseff, 64, joined the political struggle against the military dictatorship at age 16, and in 1970, at age 23, she was captured. She was detained for about three years and frequently tortured, with interrogators asking her to reveal the names of her comrades.

The Rio state government announced that it would apologize and award compensation to Rousseff and 119 other former political prisoners at a June 4 ceremony in the city of Niteroi, where she was tortured for 22 days.

Rousseff, who once was labeled by a military prosecutor as the “Joan of Arc” of the guerrilla movement, is also seeking compensation from the states of Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais, where she was also interrogated, tried, and sentenced.

The presidential office statement said the money would be distributed among 316 people by the human rights group Torture Never Again.

The founder of Torture Never Again, Cecilia Coimbra said, “Donations are always welcome, especially coming from the president.”

GJH/MF/HGL