Brazil’s president has vowed to punish the supporters of ex-leader Jair Bolsonaro who stormed Congress and Brazil’s supreme court building.
In scenes echoing the January 6 insurrection in Washington DC by Donald Trump supporters in 2021, far-right rioters also surrounded the presidential palace and sought military intervention to restore Mr Bolsonaro to power.
Police finally regained control of the buildings in the capital Brasilia last night after hours of clashes.
Brazilian authorities have begun investigating the worst attack on the country’s institutions since democracy was restored four decades ago, with the president vowing to bring those responsible for the riot to justice.
The violent attempts to undermine democracy in Brazil are unjustifiable.
— James Cleverly🇬🇧 (@JamesCleverly) January 8, 2023
President @LulaOficial and the government of Brazil have the full support of the UK.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, known as Lula, has since toured the supreme court building to view the damage for himself.
Speaking before he arrived in Brasilia, President Lula said there was “no precedent in the history of our country” for the scenes in Brasilia and called the violence the “acts of vandals and fascists”.
Brasilia’s civil police said that 300 people were arrested, with more expected in the coming days.
This is an appalling attack on democracy, with chilling parallels to the storming of the US Capitol.
— David Lammy (@DavidLammy) January 8, 2023
Labour sends its full support and solidarity to President Lula and the Brazilian people at this troubling time. https://t.co/XiILcsuUaG
In a news conference late last night, Brazil’s minister of institutional relations said the buildings would be inspected for evidence including fingerprints and images, and that the rioters apparently intended to spark similar such actions nationwide.
Justice minister Flávio Dino said the acts amounted to terrorism and coup-mongering and that authorities had begun tracking those who paid for the buses that transported protesters to the capital.
The supreme court removed the governor of Brasilia, Ibaneis Rocha, from office for 90 days last night due to flaws in security. Justice Alexandre de Moraes accused him of failing to prevent the riot and of being “painfully silent” in the face of the attack. Mr Rocha has apologised for Sunday’s events.
Pro-democracy rallies are being called by Leftist leaders and groups across Brazil.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak this morning tweeted: “I condemn any attempt to undermine the peaceful transfer of power and the democratic will of the people of Brazil.
“President Lula and his government has the United Kingdom’s full support, and I look forward to building on our countries’ close ties in the years ahead.”
In the months that followed Mr Bolsonaro’s October 30 electoral defeat he stoked belief among his hardcore supporters that the electronic voting system was prone to fraud — though he never presented any evidence.
Mr Bolsonaro is thought to be in Florida, having decided to skip the inaugural ceremonies for President Lula.
He has condemned the attack and denied responsibility for encouraging the riots.
