ELECTIONS AFTERMATH
Bolsonaro supporters invade Brazil’s Congress, Supreme Court in Brasilia
BRASILIA, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Supporters of Brazil's former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro on Sunday invaded the Supreme Court, the Congress building and surrounded the presidential palace in Brasilia, according to television images.
In an echo of the January 6, 2021 invasion of the US Capitol by supporters of former US President Donald Trump, several thousand protesters broke into the buildings and were seen on television smashing furniture inside the Supreme Court and the Congress. Local media estimated about 3,000 people were involved.
Many of the protesters dispute the result of the 30 Oct election in which leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva beat Bolsonaro.The former president repeatedly questioned, without evidence, the credibility of the country’s electronic voting system, and many of his hardcore supporters believe him.
Bolsonaro left Brazil for Florida 48 hours before the end of his mandate.
Lula was in Sao Paulo for the weekend and on a trip to the interior of the state.
Lula’s Workers Party asked the office of the top public prosecutor to order public security forces to act in containing the demonstrators.
(Reporting by Peter Siqueira, Adriano Machado and Tatiana Bautzer; Editing by Daniel Wallis)
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This was expected given the thuggery of Bolsonaro. We have to accept that years of military dictatorship in Brazil until 1986 were very damaging to the democratic culture and values. Once more, the institutions of Brazil held with the Supreme Court ordering law enforcement to protect the brittle Brazilian democracy. The use of the poor by the elite to advance their agenda is a very dangerous thing to do. We saw it in this country in July 2021 and the President watched with the pick and pay general as marauding crowds wreaked havoc and the taxpayers were called to pay the bill of the ANC inspired destruction that was as a result of one person crusade against the institutions of the country, Jacob Zuma with the tacit support of the ANC. The failure to come hard on the anarchists was a subject of stupid competition of whether it was an insurrection or a counter – revolution. In the end the responsibility lies with the ANC. We must salute the security forces of Brazil unlike their South African counterparts for taking decisive action against the anarchists. Lesiba Tefu would be correct in this instance to say kudos to the Brazilian security not to thugs.