At least 1,500 people have been detained after riots in the capital, Brasília, by supporters of far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro.
The images and videos showed Brazilian protesters fighting with police, breaking into government offices, and searching the desks of opposition lawmakers. These scenes drew immediate parallels with January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by former President Donald Trump’s backers two years and two days earlier.
Security forces in Brazil regain control
Hundreds of soldiers and police were mobilized to dismantle a protest camp outside the army’s headquarters in Brasilia, where about 3,000 supporters of Bolsonaro had set up tents.
Brazilian security forces cleared protest camps and regained the control of area. Police also stopped around 40 buses and dispersed the protestors.
1,500 detained after Brasilia riots
The 1,500 people detained by the police include those formally arrested in the vandalism and those detained for questioning, Brazil Minister of Justice Flávio Dino said Monday. 1,200 people were arrested on Monday, while 300 were arrested a day earlier.
Lula promises prosecution
Lula, the 77-year-old veteran leftist who previously led Brazil from 2003 to 2010, said in a Tweet that people responsible for the riots will be punished.
Whoever did this will be found and punished,” Lula tweeted. “Democracy guarantees the right to free expression, but it also requires people to respect institutions.”
He also met with the leaders of both houses of Congress and the chief justice of the Supreme Court, and joined them in condemning what many called the Brazil’s version of the US Capitol riots in Washington in 2021.
“The three powers of the republic, the defenders of democracy and the constitution, reject the terrorist acts and criminal, coup-mongering vandalism that occurred,” they said in a joint statement.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has sacked Brasília Governor Ibaneis Rocha from his post for 90 days. Justice Minister Alexandre de Moraes accused him of failing to prevent the riot and of being “painfully silent” in the face of the attack.
Why did protestors storm Brazil Congress?
Supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro stormed Congress and other buildings in the capital of Brasília.
The protesters are hardcore Bolsonaro supporters. They reject the election results and some of them have been protesting since Bolsonaro lost the October 30 presidential election. They have been calling for the military to take over and oust newly inaugurated President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, alleging he is a thief who will lead the country into communism, and restore Bolsonaro to power.
World reaction to protests
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also said that he condemned the assault on Brazil’s democratic institutions but he was confident “the will of the Brazilian people and the country’s institutions” would be respected.
U.S. President Joe Biden said that the riots in Brazil were “outrageous.” His national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the U.S. “condemns any effort to undermine democracy in Brazil.”
Biden tweeted that he looked forward to continuing to work with Lula, calling the riots an “assault on democracy and on the peaceful transfer of power in Brazil.”
British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said on Twitter that “The violent attempts to undermine democracy in Brazil are unjustifiable. President @LulaOficial and the government of Brazil have the full support of the UK.”