Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro (2019-2022) gathered thousands of followers in Sao Paulo this Sunday To take his first mass bath after leaving power and to protect himself from investigation into an alleged coup attempt.
right wing leader He called his followers together from 3 pm onwards.local time (1 p.m. Colombia time), in symbolic Paulista Avenue in Sao Paulo, A symbolic place where he has already given some of his most fiery speeches.
On September 7, 2021, on the occasion of Independence Day, while still president, Bolsonaro made serious attacks against Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, who was already investigating him, and assured that he would Will not follow the decisions. Something he didn’t accomplish.
Bolsonaro called on his supporters this Sunday in response to the police operation launched on February 8. Authorized by the Supreme Court, in which his passport was retained, he was banned from leaving the country and from maintaining contact with other investigators of the coup plot.
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according to research, Bolsonaro and other members of his executive planned to discredit the electronic voting system before the election, And then they prepared a coup against the new government of Lula da Silva – which was not implemented.
The so-called Operation Tempus Veritatis (Hour of Truth, in Latin) against
There were raids and arrests of several close associates of Bolsonaro and some of his former ministers.
Police believe the draft decree to annul the results of the 2022 elections passed through Bolsonaro’s hands, which Lula won by a narrow margin, as part of a plan to keep him in power and they have used Judge D. Also considered the arrest of Moraes, and even the President of the National Congress, Rodrigo Pacheco.
According to records, he also sought to avoid the appointment of Lula, who will be in power from January 1, 2023.
The final chapter of this effort was a week later, when Thousands of Bolsonaristas attacked and destroyed the presidency, parliament and the headquarters of the Supreme Court, In Brasília, forcing military intervention to overthrow the progressive leader.
Last Thursday, the former head of state testified in the police station accompanied by about twenty former colleagues, including three reserve generals who were his ministers (Walter Braga Netto, Paulo Sergio Nogueira and Augusto Heleno) and former commander Admiral Almir Garnier. Marine.
However, Bolsonaro describes himself as a victim of “harassment” and remained silent when questioned by police on Thursday.
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This was the mobilization this Sunday
Climbing a truck installed in the middle of Paulista Avenue, the most symbolic of the city, This Sunday, Bolsonaro denied the existence of a coup plot, described himself as a victim of “persecution” and criticized “the abuses of some people.”
“What is the shock? Dressed in green and yellow, he defended himself in front of the crowd, saying, “They are tanks in the street, they are weapons, they are conspiracies… none of this was done in Brazil.”
Furthermore, the leader called for the country to “calm down” He asked legislators to approve amnesty for those convicted of attacking the presidential headquarters, Congress and the Supreme Court in Brasília on January 8, 2023.
Bolsonaro also assured that “it cannot be accepted” that opponents be eliminated from the political scene, but He avoided making explicit allegations against one of his favorite targets, the Supreme Court.
He said, “We cannot accept that any power can remove anyone from the political scene unless it is for a justified reason. We cannot think about elections by removing the opponents.”
Bolsonaro supporters began gathering hours before the start of the event on Avenida Paulista to find a place in the front rows in front of the truck where Bolsonaro would speak.
Wrapped in Brazilian flags, the majority heeded Bolsonaro’s request not to carry signs with general messages against the Supreme Court or President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
However, during the protests chants of “thief” were raised against Lula and many protesters questioned the “impartiality” of the Supreme Court.
In a show of political strength, former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro, a handful of governors and mayors, as well as about a hundred legislators, were on stage with Bolsonaro.
In contrast to the measured tone used by Bolsonaro, Influential evangelical pastor Silas Malafia attacks court And talked about an alleged “evil engineering” to try to imprison leader Bolsonaro, who has already been disqualified until 2030 for questioning electronic ballot boxes used in the elections.
Malafia warned that, if the court’s magistrates order Bolsonaro to be imprisoned, “it will not be for his (the former president’s) destruction, but for his destruction.”
Surrounded by justice, he also faces other investigations related to Covid-19, misuse of state gifts during his mandate and the spread of fake news. The right-wing leader intended to measure his popularity on the street.
In elections, Bolsonaro remains leader of the opposition, although he cannot stand in any elections, having been disqualified until 2030 due to his criticism of electronic ballot boxes without evidence.
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For Glauco Pérez, professor of political science at the University of São Paulo (USP), Bolsonaro’s intention was to show that “he has popular and political support” at a time when the siege is tightening around him.
“Bolsonaro is trying to unify the political side of this process,” he told Efe. “This is an attempt to survive, to avoid possible punishment from justice. He has always made it clear that he is afraid of going to jail.” Are.”
Before the march, André Rosa, a political scientist at the University of Brasília, said that if the demonstrations had received greater support, (Bolsonaro) could have said that people were with him. Otherwise, he will lose “legitimacy”.
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Following controversial statements by Lula in which he compared Israel’s military campaign in Gaza to genocide, Bolsonaro and his followers also showed their support for the Jewish state. The former president had kept the Israeli flag in a box on a truck.
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*With AFP and EFE