Is Bolsonaro to Blame for the Brazilian Capitol Invasion?
On January 8th, the Brazilian Capitol was invaded by Bolsonaro supporters. So, if we are to be literal about the title of this article, then Bolsonaro is to blame for the attack.
However, I’m skeptical about the ongoing allegations.
Bolsonaro’s reaction
Even though extremists tend to feel enabled by the way loudmouth leaders conduct their narrative, the ultimate act is conducted by the first group.
And to be honest and serious about it, these leaders don’t tend to interfere in the indictment of said extremists.
Lula da Silva won the presidency in 2022 and, in the ceremony of January 1st, Bolsonaro should, by Decree 70.274, of March 9th, 1972, pass on the presidential Sash.
Safe to say, he didn’t do it.
Bolsonaro, nonconformed with the results, broke years of legal tradition and flew away to Florida. And, from there, reacted to the recent events:
In his Twitter, Bolsonaro wrote that peaceful protests are part of Democracy, while also condemning both this invasion and the ones promoted by the Left during 2013 and 2017 — Of course, he had to sting the Left.
In the said thread, he also repudiates the accusations of the current head of Brazil’s executive branch, Lula da Silva.
Lula’s accusations
Lula condoned the actions of the vandals who invaded the Capitol, in the press conference conducted after the event.
The current president even decreed federal intervention in the event. He did what was right — it was a criminal act that needed a proper response. However, the way he expressed himself was rather irresponsible.
The one thing I just can’t wrap my mind around is that he accused the invaders of resembling fanatical Stalinists, only to correct himself.
Was he acknowledging the difference in ideology between the two groups or was he just trying to belittle the atrocities committed by Stalin’s regime?
Yes, presidents are human too, but for someone who says to have decades of experience, he felt too emotional and unbalanced.
The wildcard reason
It seems that everyone is blaming the invasion on Bolsonaro and his enabling influence on the far right wing.
For me, the reason seems to be another: the salary raise of politicians.
On December 20th, the Chamber of Deputies approved a Draft Legislative Decree to readjust the salaries of the President of the Republic, Vice President, Deputies, Senators, and Ministers of State.
This was something that Bolsonaro fought against during his mandate, despite being pressured left, right and center. Even Central Bank employees, for example, went on strike to pressure the former president.
His administration was only focused on adjustments for police careers, his electoral base. However, due to such revolt, he ended up promising a linear readjustment of 5% for all, only to give up on that proposal.
If you care to review the footage of the invasions, you can see some police enforcers being as passive as they can be.
Could all be a coincidence, or it can be a well-prepared scheme that took the politicians' salary rase into consideration.
Regardless, in my opinion, Bolsonaro is nowhere near the sole responsible for such an irresponsible and vile event.
