President says Brazil's silence on case is 'a matter of common sense'; He says he is waiting for tests
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) spoke this Sunday (February 18, 2024) about the death of Alexei Navalny, the main opponent of Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Speaking to journalists in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the head of the executive branch questioned the reason for the rush to identify someone allegedly responsible for the death.
Lula was questioned about the case over the Brazilian government's silence. The president said it was “a matter of common sense.” He explained: “If there is suspicion that there is a death, we first have to carry out an investigation to find out what the citizen died of.” Let's assume that the coroners will say: 'The guy is on This or that died.” And he added: “Otherwise you are now judging that I don't know who ordered the murder, and that wasn't it either.” Would you then apologize?”
Nalvany's death was reported on Friday (February 16) by the prison authorities of Russia's YamalNenets district in Siberia, where he was serving his sentence. The activist reportedly felt unwell after a walk and “lost consciousness almost immediately.” A medical team was called to his aid but was unable to revive him.
Activist Alexei Navalny's spokeswoman and writer Kira Yarmysh said on Saturday (February 17) that his body had not yet been returned to his family. According to her, Navalny's mother and her lawyer went to the Salekhard morgue to seek her release, but the body was not there. According to Yarmish, the committee investigating the activist's death said that the body would only be handed over after the work was completed.
In another NewsThe author stated that the activist was “murdered.” Several world leaders, including US President Joe Biden, blamed Russia and Putin for the death.
“Why this rush to accuse someone?” Lula asked. “Do you know how many years I’ve been waiting for this? [para saber quem é] the mastermind of Marielle's crime [Franco]? Six. And I'm in no hurry to say who ordered the murder. I want to find [o mandante]. When I find it, I say, 'It was so and so,'” he said.
“I don’t want any speculation. So the citizen died in a prison. I don’t know if he was sick, if he had any problems,” he continued.
Lula cited the case of the man who died on Wednesday (February 14) during an Ethiopian Airlines flight carrying his ministers to Addis Ababa. The passenger, whose name, age and nationality were not disclosed, was initially treated on board but did not survive. The PT member was not in the group.
“The man died on the plane. Who will we blame? You have to do the forensic examination and then say, 'Look, this man had something like this and died,'” he explained. “Because otherwise it would be trivializing an accusation,” he continued. “I even understand the interests of those who immediately accuse,” Lula said. “But that’s not my motto,” he concluded.