Wrapped in a flag in the colors of Brazil, Vanessa does not budge: “This 1er January, Lula will not be invested. Never, you hear me, he will never climb the Planalto ramp [le palais présidentiel de Brasilia] ! Never ! », assures this 56-year-old woman with red hair, met on Saturday December 31, 2022 on the eve of the left-wing president taking office on Sunday. A certainty, which she says she holds from Heaven: ” God is with us ! He won’t let such a thing happen. »
In the capital, Vanessa is not the only one to cling to such certainties. She is one of several thousand protesters who, in several places in Brazil, continue to contest the verdict of the October 30 election, which saw Jair Bolsonaro beaten by Luiz Inacio da Silva. A last square of faithful, die-hard and resolute, who demand without blinking an army coup.
“We are as motivated as on the first day, and there are more of us every day! », guarantees Vanessa, evoking the camp of the ultrabolsonarists of Brasilia. It has been installed for two long months opposite the army headquarters, an imposing building designed by Oscar Niemeyer, decorated with an obelisk and an acoustic conch, located to the west of the capital.
But this December 31, in the rain, Jair Bolsonaro’s “army” looks like a routed regiment. The tarps are soaked, as are the green and gold flags. Families, sometimes from far away, sleep in precarious tents on the asphalt. Around noon, a handful of them unsmilingly swallow their lunch on plastic plates. Activists pray on their knees. Others wander between the barracks.
Fundamentalist priests preach all day long
Is it the Berezina of Bolsonarists? While the capital celebrates the return of the left, the far right continues to denounce fraud and electronic ballot boxes. Under a tent, converted into a church, fundamentalist priests preach all day long. “It works twenty-four hours a day, people pray there even at night! », boasts a faithful. In mid-December, just opposite, we simulated a crucifixion: an activist wearing a crown of thorns played the role of Jesus…
Lula? MPs ? The judges ? The media? ” All of the Communists, who want to turn Brazil into Venezuela! », claims Edson, 70, a former air conditioning technician, who now sells rain capes and flags to protesters. The man also rails against the military, who refused to intervene to keep Bolsonaro in power. “In the army, there are a lot of watermelons: green outside and red inside! »he curses.
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