The attacks on three public buildings carried out by supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro in the Brazilian capital this Sunday were widespread condemned by the international community.
According to AFP, heads of state of various ideological leanings and international organizations have firmly rejected the attacks, which took place a week after the inauguration of President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Argentine President Alberto Fernández expressed his solidarity with the Lula government “in the face of this attempted coup”. and as President of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), he called on the region to unite against “the anti-democratic reaction.”
Presidents Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico; Gustavo Petro from Colombia and Gabriel Boric from Chile.
López Obrador described the attempted coup by Brazil’s conservatives as “reprehensible and undemocratic”. egged on by the leadership of the oligarchic power, its spokesmen and fanatics”.
“Lula is not alone, he has the support of the progressive forces of his country, Mexico, the Americas and the world,” he added on his Twitter account.
“Fascism chooses a coup d’etat,” wrote the Colombian President on the same social network. “The right wing was unable to uphold the non-violence pact. It is urgent time for the OAS to meet if it is to continue to live as an institution and apply the democratic charter,” he added.
For his part, Boric described the attack as “unrepresentable”. His government announced it would join other countries in sponsoring an extraordinary session of the OAS Permanent Council “to support democracy and the rule of law in Brazil.”
The Presidents of Ecuador and Bolivia, Guillermo Lasso and Luis Arce, respectively, and the President of Peru, Dina Boluarte, condemned the actions of Bolsonaro’s supporters.
Lasso accused them of “disrespect and vandalism” because “they threaten the democratic order and the security of citizens” and Arce reiterated that “the fascists will always try to conquer by force what they failed to get in the elections “.
Boluarte dismissed “the use of force and attempts to attack Congress and the Presidency in Brazil.”
United States President Joe Biden called what happened “scandalous,” and his national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said Washington “condemns any attempt to undermine democracy.”
“Our support for Brazil’s democratic institutions is unwavering. Brazil’s democracy is not being shaken by violence,” Sullivan said on Twitter.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wrote on Twitter that “respect for the democratic rights of the people is of paramount importance in any democracy”.
Organization of American States (OAS) Secretary General Luis Almagro condemned “the attack on the institutions in Brasiliawhich is a reprehensible act and a direct attack on democracy”.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) also rejected “the attacks on institutions and the violence in Brasilia” in a Portuguese statement quoted by AFP.
The rulers of Cuba and Venezuela, Miguel Díaz-Canel and Nicolás Maduro, who were absent from their ally’s inauguration, also expressed their solidarity with Lula.
The Bolsonaristas’ attacks have been condemned even by far-right governments such as Italy’s Georgia Meloniwho considered that “the images of the burglary in the headquarters of the institutions are incompatible with any form of democratic dissent” and called for “a return to normality”.
The governments of France, Spain and Germany also expressed their opposition to the attacks and their support for Lula, as did the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, who expressed his dismay at the “extremist violence”.
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola also said she was “deeply concerned” and European Council President Charles Michel assured that he was “President Lula da Silva, democratically elected by millions of Brazilians in a fair and free manner”. fully supported elections.” .
Bolsonaro is distancing himself from the attackers more than seven hours after the events.
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who had traveled to the United States two days before Lula’s inauguration and therefore did not present him with the presidential sash, published a message distancing himself from his supporters who carried out the attacks on his Twitter account.
“Peaceful demonstrations, within the law, are part of democracy. However, vandalism and invasions of public buildings such as have occurred today, as well as those practiced by the left in 2013 and 2017, escape the norm,” wrote more than seven hours after the events.
– Throughout my tenure, I have always adhered to the four lines of the Constitution, respecting and defending the law, democracy, transparency and our sacred freedom.
— Jair M Bolsonaro 2️⃣2️⃣ (@jairbolsonaro) January 9, 2023
After his electoral defeat last October Bolsonaro approved the start of the change of government, although he did not publicly acknowledge Lula’s triumph by 50.9% against 49.1% of the vote.
The best radical followers of Bolsonaro They have camped outside the gates of military barracks in various cities over the past two months. This way They called for a military “intervention” that would prevent Lula’s inaugurationperformed on January 1st.
The ceremony had to be carried out with increased security because in the days before Authorities arrested a man for planting an explosive near Brasilia airport.
The suspect, along with other Bolsonaristas, planned to place explosives in strategic places to “cause havoc”, provoking and thus avoiding the intervention of the armed forces the inauguration of Lula da Silvafrom what he told the police.
the Attacks this Sunday against the Planalto Palace (headquarters of the executive branch), the Supreme Court and the National Congress in Brasilia form Part of the coup is directed against Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Security forces regained control of Brazil’s Congress headquarters, Presidency and Supreme Court on the same Sunday, EFE reported.
Preliminary figures from the Brazilian Minister of Justice, Flávio Dino, and the Governor of the Federal District of Brasilia, Ibaneis Rocha, speak of more than 400 detainees and 46 injured.
According to the journalists’ association, at least ten journalists were among the injured.
Among those attacked was a New Yorker magazine journalist who was beaten and knocked down by protesters. A photographer from the Brazilian media Metropoles was also beaten and kicked by ten men.
Other professionals from the newspaper O Tempo and the TV channel Jovem Pam were attacked. The attackers threatened them with guns.
The radicals also forced several photographers to delete the pictures they took, including a professional from EFE.