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The debate surrounding the legalization of games in Brazil has reached a breaking point with Bill 2.234/2022, which seeks to legislate physical casinos, bingo, and other games, and is approaching a potential vote in the Senate. Throughout this parliamentary measure, an influential voice of opposition emerged through the religious faction, and that was within Brazil’s evangelical sector.
On July 1st, the Interdenominational Council of Evangelical Ministers of Brazil (CIMEB) published an open letter categorically against the bill. The letter was signed by influential religious leaders such as Pastor Silas Malafaia, who has long been a vocal critic of the gaming industry.
Issues Regarding Corruption and Criminality
The letter describes various reasons for which the group opposes the bill. Most prominent among them is the view that legalized gambling goes hand in hand with facilitating illegal activity. Consistent with the assertion, Brazil’s already problematic conditions with corruption, improper regulation, and criminal syndicates would further be undercut by the proliferation of legalized gambling.
“Facing serious challenges of corruption and non-control in most areas, Brazil would be opening the doors even wider to illicit conduct by legalizing bingos and games of chance“, according to the text. “It would prejudicially affect the likelihood of ensuring transparency and honesty in this industry“.
Evangelical leaders also invoke the potential that legalized gambling can be a means of money laundering involving organized crime and drug trafficking. These arguments are a longstanding opposition to gambling in much of the world, where considerations about criminal exploitation of the industry have influenced legislative debates.
Socioeconomic and Public Health Implications
In addition to illegal activity, the CIMEB letter also creates social and public health concerns. The evangelical community points out that legal gambling could increase personal amounts of debt among citizens and also create upswings of mental illness associated with compulsive gambling practices.
“Brazilian families already are in debt and emotionally unstable“, warns the letter. “Legalization of gambling can lead many down the road to financial ruin and emotional distress“.
Moreover, the declaration mentions the existence of professional analysis and technical reports advising against gambling legalization prohibition, but without a specific reference to any reports. In general, the tone of the letter seems to be an appeal to the evangelical voters to compel lawmakers to reject the bill.
Political Mobilization Before Elections
Arguably, the most political sentence in the open letter is its last one. CIMEB announces that it will monitor and publish senators’ votes on this bill, particularly during the lead-up to forthcoming elections.
“We will not hesitate to make evangelicals known, at election time, about the senators who vote for this brutality“, the letter reads.
This seat is a testament to an evident intention to influence not only the legislative agenda but also voter preference in Brazil’s highly polarized political sphere. Given that evangelical voters constitute a large percentage of the voting population, their mobilization on this axis would decide political battles, particularly in tight elections.
Waiting for a Senate Vote
The Senate has not yet put the bill on a calendar for a vote, but it is expected to be brought to the floor before the parliamentary recess begins on July 18. Senate President Davi Alcolumbre has expressed interest in moving the bill forward, and the bill is reportedly being coordinated with the executive, the Finance, Tourism, and Industry and Commerce ministries.
As controversy comes to a boil, Brazil stands at a fork in the road, considering legalization of an already pervasive informal economy and responding to vociferous protests on moral, social, and economic grounds.
Whether the evangelical leadership’s call to action will make a difference in the ultimate vote is anyone’s guess. What is certain, however, is that legalisation of gambling in Brazil is not so much a policy issue—it is increasingly becoming a national question of values, regulation, and the government’s role in private vice.
Source: YogoNet
