Investigations
Brazil’s ex-president summoned for coup
Jair Bolsonaro has rejected the allegations and called on his supporters for a large demonstration. photo
©Luis Nova/AP
Bolsonaro is in the sights of investigators. The former president is said to have been involved in an alleged coup to keep him in power after his election defeat.
The police launched a large-scale operation two weeks ago, executing search warrants and arrest warrants as well as preventive measures such as confiscating passports in several states. The investigations were directed against a criminal organization that sought a coup and the abolition of the democratic constitutional state, it was said.
Former ministers also summoned
In addition to Bolsonaro, who ruled Brazil as president from 2019 to the end of 2022, the targets of the operation were also other former top officials and political allies. According to the news portal “G1”, the former defense and justice ministers as well as advisers and military personnel were also summoned during Bolsonaro’s term in office.
Bolsonaro’s defense had requested access to the investigation files. Judge Alexandre de Moraes of the Supreme Court (STF) approved access to the operation’s search warrants, according to the “G1” portal. Moraes, however, rejected the requested access to digital media such as telephones or computers, which the ex-president’s lawyers demanded in order to “ensure equality of arms in the investigation process”.
This prevented the defense from having “a minimum level of knowledge” about why the ex-president was called to testify, his lawyer said. As soon as this access is guaranteed, Bolsonaro will not refrain from testifying.
“Coup dynamics from the top of the government”
The evidence on which the investigation is based includes the recording of a meeting in July 2022 with Bolsonaro, ministers and military officials. The exchange of conversations “clearly shows the ordering of the coup dynamics from the top of the government,” Judge Moraes said, according to CNN Brasil.
Bolsonaro has denied the allegations and called on his supporters to hold a large demonstration this Sunday in the city of São Paulo to “defend” themselves. It should be a “peaceful event” – “in defense of our constitutional state.”
The right-wing Bolsonaro was defeated by the left-wing politician Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the runoff election for the presidency in October 2022. On January 8, 2023, supporters of the ex-military who did not want to recognize Lula’s election victory stormed Congress, the seat of government and the Supreme Court in Brasília and caused considerable damage.