Bolsonaro would be the first President of Brazil to be convicted of attempted coupons after his tenure. The 70-year-old threatens up to 43 years in prison. Due to his age and health problems after an assassination attempt, a house arrest would also be considered.
According to the indictment, Bolsonaro had planned after his election defeat against the left -wing President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to impose the state of emergency in Brazil and set a new election. According to the indictment, the attempted coup failed due to the lack of support from the military.
Five charges
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The five charges against Bolsonaro also included the formation of an “armed criminal organization”, which is said to have worked out a plan for the murder of Lula, whose deputy and judge Alexandre de Moraes. Another indictment point was “attempt to abolish the democratic constitutional state”.
In January 2023, followers of the right -wing populist stormed the congress, the office of the president and the Supreme Court and caused serious devastation. They wanted to trigger a military coup.
“Brazil has almost returned to the dictatorship”
The first judge of the Supreme Court, de Moraes, voted for a guilty verdict on Tuesday. Bolsonaro had all committed the crimes brought up by the public prosecutor, the judge said. And further: “Brazil has almost returned to the dictatorship.” The judge has long been considered an arch enemy of Bolsonaro. According to the indictment, Bolsonaro is said to have known about plans to murder and the murder of Lula and Vice President Geraldo Alckmin. After de Moraes, Flavio Dino and Antunes Rocha also voted for the guilty verdict.
However, the different vote of the judge Fux on Wednesday could pave the way for a calling, which would then have to be negotiated with eleven judges in front of the court’s plenum. This could delay the conclusion of the procedure until shortly before the 2026 presidential election. Fux said the court was not responsible in the case. In his view, the process in front of lower instances should have been negotiated because Bolsonaro was no longer in office.
Bolsonaro stages itself as a victim
In addition to Bolsonaro, seven other people were charged, including former ministers and generals. It was the first legal proceedings in Brazil for coup allegations against a former president.
The 70-year-old ex-president had previously rejected all allegations and staged himself as a victim of political persecution. Bolsonaro has been under house arrest since August and wears an electronic ankle bracelet.
From the outsider to the accused
In 2018, Bolsonaro started the presidential election as an outsider and surprisingly won a victory. He was able to win over the voters frustrated by business misery and corruption, but after four years in office he had little success.
Bolsonaro’s handling of the Coronavirus pandemic, which he abbots as a “little flu”, was fatal: 700,000 Brazilians died of Covid-19, only in the USA there were even more deaths.
He also drove the Defoliation of the Amazon rainforest and thus caused indignation internationally. His hate tirades against political opponents and his misogynal and homophobic statements also caused excitement.
Trump as a supporter Bolsonaros
Nevertheless, he also got international backing. US President Donald Trump, for example, is not only Bolsonaros Idol, but also a loyal supporter. Because of the alleged “witch hunt” to the ex-president, he recently imposed tariffs of 50 percent against Brazil and sanctions against judge de Moraes.
In the Brazilian population, too, Bolsonaro still enjoys support: On Sunday, thousands of supporters of the ultra -right politician took to the streets in several Brazilian cities to express their support and to demand amnesty for those who attacked the government quarter in 2023.
On the signs of the demonstrators in Sao Paulo, the word for Bolsonaro and the country’s highest court and Trump’s highest court were read on Sundays.
