Former President Jair Bolsonaro returned to Brazil on the morning of this Thursday (30) after a three-month period in the United States, during which he lost the elections to the current president of Brazil, Luís Inácio Lula da Silva.
He returns amid a series of investigations and risks even being arrested if found guilty of spreading unfounded allegations that Brazil’s electoral system was rigged (independent security expert analyses have shown that there was no fraud in the 2022 presidential elections).
The Supreme Court of Brazil has also stated that it intends to investigate Bolsonaro to ascertain the former president’s involvement, even if indirect, in the invasion and looting of Congress last January.
In his first interview upon landing in Brazil, Bolsonaro defended his supporters and mentioned a theory circulating among the group that the acts of violence that occurred in January were not perpetrated by his followers.
“In all the movements our people participated in, and there were several over the years, you didn’t see a burning trash can, a broken window. Nothing. People went with their families, with their children,” he told Jovem Pan. “Our people did not do, in my view, anything against the law.”
Bolsonaro also defended the pressure from his allies for a congressional inquiry into whether the protests were infiltrated and said that acts of violence against federal buildings in Brasília were “organized a few hours before” they occurred. He accuses the government of trying to obstruct the inquiry, insinuating that they are trying to hide something.
The political climate in Brazil has been tense since Bolsonaro’s departure, with many of his allies calling for his return.
During his stay in the United States, Bolsonaro met with conservative activists and experts, appearing at various events, from the Conservative Political Action Conference to the opening of a fast-food restaurant.
At Brasília airport on Thursday morning, dozens of supporters gathered at the arrival gate to greet Bolsonaro. Federal Police agents, however, determined that the former president and his team use a separate exit for security reasons.
Bolsonaro’s entourage took him to the headquarters of the Liberal Party, where he met with high-ranking right-wing politicians, family members, and some of his most loyal allies.
In a brief speech to conservative lawmakers, Bolsonaro hailed Florida as a model for Brazil. The state’s Republican governor and lawmakers have advanced a very conservative agenda on guns, education, and other issues.
“Our dream is to follow this American state in many of the good things it has there,” Bolsonaro said. “The vast majority of actions are beneficial. This is the Brazilian state that has worked.”
He added: “Everything that exists there is what we want to implement here too: freedom of expression, private property, the issue of crime, the legitimate right to self-defense. The most important thing is the freedom for people to work, express themselves, and carry on with their lives.”
Bolsonaro is set to take office next week as honorary president of the Liberal Party, the main opposition force in Congress to Lula’s government.
“I will not lead any opposition,” he told CNN Brasil in an interview published on Wednesday (29), adding that he would simply “participate in my party” and that Lula’s government would be harmed by its own failures.
Source: The New York Times