"I'M STILL HERE" AND THE FAILURES OF THE STATE OF BRAZIL IN CASES OF DISAPPEARANCE: FROM PAST EUNICE TO PRESENT-DAY EUNICE

In Brazil, missing persons cases draw low public visibility, despite high rates of occurrence. However, in 2024, the matter gained traction following the widespread recognition of the Brazilian film "I’m Still Here." The film portrays Eunice Paiva's struggle after her husband Rubens Paiva's disappearance in 1971, during a period marked by Brazil's military dictatorship, and its impact encouraged families to denounce cases in which the Brazilian State's response to disappearance had been characterized by omission or negligence. Within this context, REDESPARC, a Brazilian research network focused on missing persons, conducted an interview with Eunice Santos, whose husband disappeared in 2015 due to mental health issues. Therefore, this article aims to compare the cases of Eunice Paiva and Eunice Santos, contributing to identify, through a gender perspective, the specific psychosocial and economic impacts faced by women, while also contributing to a broader understanding of the challenges the Brazilian State continues to face in cases of disappearance. The research was conducted, partly, through qualitative methods based on structured interviews, which produced primary data that were analyzed through an inductive approach. Additionally, comprehensive bibliographic and documentary research was conducted, employing a historical-comparative method for case comparison and a deductive approach for analyzing secondary data. The findings revealed that, despite the distinct causes of their husbands' disappearances, both "Eunices" experienced police inaction, governmental omission, bureaucratic impediments, psychological trauma and socioeconomic damage. The findings reflect a continuous policy of oblivion towards missing persons that remains intrinsic to the foundational structure of Brazilian society.