Jair Bolsonaro calls for road closures but supports “legal demonstrations”.
On Wednesday, November 2, outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro asked his supporters to block Brazil’s roads. “lawful demonstrations”At the end of a day, his supporters gathered in front of the command post and demanded the intervention of the army.
“I appeal to you: open the roads. It seems to me that this is not part of the legitimate demonstrationsthe far-right leader, who lost to Lula in the presidential election, said in a video posted on social networks, referring to barriers maintained in more than half of the states, though fewer than the day before. Other demonstrations elsewhere in Brazil are part of the democratic game, welcome. »
violent episode
This day of mobilization was marred by a violent episode: a motorist hit demonstrators at a roadblock near Mirassol in the state of Sao Paulo (Southeast), injuring at least seven people, according to CNN. Some of the Bolsonarians proved to be threatening journalists, including the AFP team, especially in Sao Paulo, where the number of demonstrators began to thin out in the afternoon.
The protests came a day after Jair Bolsonaro, a former army captain (1964-1985) nostalgic for the military dictatorship defeated by former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (2003-) in Sunday’s presidential election. 2010). he said on Tuesday, breaking two days of heavy silence “would respect” The constitution and the left wing gave the green light to the transition with his successor, Lula.
But he also gave a message that was taken as encouragement by his supporters: “Peaceful protests will always be welcome. » According to him, they are “Anger and feeling of injustice regarding the conduct of the election process”A statement made on Wednesday by his son Eduardo Bolsonaro, the deputy, in an Instagram post showing an aerial view of the demonstration in Rio de Janeiro.
“Civil Resistance”
In Sao Paulo, thousands of Bolsonarians demonstrated in front of the Southeast military command, demanding that the army intervene in their cries. “Federal Intervention Immediate”, AFP-TV journalist noted. According to an AFP photographer, a similar demonstration in front of an army headquarters in Brazil also brought together thousands of protesters. “civil resistance”. The same scenario in Rio de Janeiro where thousands of demonstrators chanted in front of the military command: “Lula, thief, your place is in prison”According to AFP-TV journalist.
Nazi salutes were filmed during protests in the southern state of Santa Catarina. According to the UOL news site, demonstrations in favor of military intervention were held in front of army buildings in 11 states (out of 27 states) on Wednesday. “It’s no use crying, we lost the game”however, he declared to the daily Hey Globo Vice President Hamilton Mourao has often shown a spirit of independence from the head of state.
Hundreds of blocks
The number of roadblocks decreased significantly on Wednesday: the Federal Highway Police (PRF) noted that around a hundred roadblocks affecting 12 states were still in place, according to a report published late Wednesday. According to him, only 776 such protests have been destroyed so far.
When the police began to use force with the permission of the Supreme Court, their numbers fell sharply. “all necessary means” to open the roads. “We cannot use the methods of the left, (…) impeding freedom of movement”President Bolsonaro said on Tuesday.
The dams have caused supply difficulties in Brazil, which uses almost exclusively road transport to transport goods and food. The National Confederation of Industry issued a warning on Tuesday “risk of fuel shortages and shortages” if the obstacles in the way were not removed quickly. Data site G1, meanwhile, estimated that 70% of supermarkets are already experiencing shortages of certain products.
