The official subordination in Brazil of human and social sciences to bioethics: The Law nº 14.874/2024

Abstract

The article evaluates how the Law no 14.874, of May 28, 2024, which addresses research involving human beings and establishes
the National System of Ethics in Research with Human Beings, formalized the legal subordination of the humanities and
social sciences (as well as linguistics, literature and arts) to biomedicine, more precisely to bioethics, one of its most recent
and fiercest branches. The long struggle against this spurious subordination is recalled, dating back at least to 2011, including
efforts by the Forum of Humanities, Social Sciences, Applied Social Sciences, Linguistics, Literature and Arts (FCHSSALLA),
in opposition to the domination of the CEP/CONEP (Research Ethics Committees/ National Commission of Research Ethics).
The work is based on the author’s experience as a representative of the Brazilian Association of Anthropology (ABA) and
the National Association of Post-Graduation and Research in Social Sciences (ANPOCS) in the Working Group that drafted
the Resolution no 510/2016 (National Health Council/MS), as a member of the Technical Chamber of Ethics in Research
(CTEP) of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), as a member of the Working Group of Ethics in Research of
FCHSSALLA, and as a full member of a Committee of Ethics in Research (CEP) of UFRJ.