Several thousand supporters of the former president Jair Bolsonaro took part in the undemocratic action in the capital Brasília. They were escorted to the buildings by the military police, who should not have reacted when the demonstration turned violent. The demonstrators stormed the country’s Supreme Court, the presidential palace and the National Assembly. They vandalized the buildings and stole both weapons and the original of the country’s constitution from 1988. Only three hours after the unrest began had the police established control. TOOK A LONG TIME: Only when they received direct orders to do so from the country’s federal authorities did the police intervene. Photo: UESLEI MARCELINO / Reuters Well known That the plan was to storm the buildings must have been well known in advance. In social media such as Telegram and Twitter, there have been many messages about the plan in the last two weeks. That is written by Reuters. The Brazilian Minister of Justice, Flavio Dino, says they will investigate who organized and financed the protesters. Dino says one of the clues is who paid for the several hundred buses that transported protesters to the capital. The country’s president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, says that all those involved will be punished. PROSECUTOR: President Lula da Silva on a tour of the presidential palace to look at the damage after the storm. He accuses those responsible for security of not having reacted. Photo: Eraldo Peres / AP The Supreme Court did not react, the National Assembly and the presidential palace are all gathered around a large square in Brasília. A wide street runs from this square to the defense headquarters about eight kilometers away. The protesters had to leave the buses at the headquarters and walk to the square. They were escorted by the military police. writes Reuters. This police is said to have made no attempt to stop the demonstrators. Not even when the storming began did they act. Accusing the police – I believe there has been incompetence, reluctance or malicious intent among those responsible for public safety in Brasília. And it is not the first time, says President Lula da Silva. He believes he has seen pictures of public officials showing protesters the way to the buildings. – The police officers who did this cannot go unpunished, and can no longer be part of the police. They no longer have the trust of Brazilian society, Lula said. IN EXILE: The former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro narrowly lost the election last year. Just before his presidency ended, Bolsonaro went to Florida. He has stayed there ever since. Photo: ADRIANO MACHADO / Reuters Bolsonaro condemns Former president Jair Bolsonaro writes on Twitter that peaceful demonstrations that are within the limits of the law are part of democracy. – Looting and storming of public institutions that we saw today, and that we also saw from the left in 2013 and 2017, is the exception, writes Bolsonaro. Photo: Twitter/Bolsonaro Bolsonaro rejects President Lula da Silva’s accusations that he himself incited the riots in the Brazilian capital Brasília. He emphasizes that he is committed to following the four lines of the Brazilian constitution: To respect and defend the laws, democracy, openness and freedom. Others on Bolsonaro’s side have also criticized the attack. – This is a sad day for the Brazilian nation. We cannot support the looting of Congress, says the leader of Bolsonaro’s party, Valdemar Costa Neto, according to the New York Times.
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