Former Brazilian president and conservative firebrand Jair Bolsonaro spoke out against supporters who invaded and vandalized the government’s top institutions on Sunday.
(Bloomberg) — Former Brazilian president and conservative firebrand Jair Bolsonaro spoke out against supporters who invaded and vandalized the government’s top institutions on Sunday.
Bolsonaro’s condemnation was muted and came hours after protesters, who reject his October election loss, broke past security at Brazil’s congress and went on to invade the presidential palace and the supreme court. Some 400 people have been arrested so far, according to local police.
“Peaceful demonstrations, within the law, are part of democracy. But depredations and invasions of public buildings like we saw today, like the acts done by the left in 2013 and 2017, are not within the rules,” Bolsonaro said on Twitter.
Read more: Brasilia stormed by pro-Bolsonaro rioters
The unrest on Sunday follows months of protests in front of military installations by Bolsonaro supporters who were demanding an intervention to prevent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from returning to power.
Lula, as the president is known, and his ministers denounced the events as “unprecedented” and “barbaric” and promised to punish the protesters and anyone who was financing and organizing the unrest. Justice Minister Flavio Dino called the events a coup attempt and highlighted the slow reaction by local police. He said Bolsonaro was politically but not legally responsible for Sunday’s events.
Read more: Pro-Bolsonaro rioters invade Brasilia in challenge to Lula
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.