Bolsonaro returns to Brazil, complicating life for Lula


Marcelo SILVA DE SOUSA
Wed, March 29, 2023 


Three months after leaving for the United States in the final hours of his term, Brazil's ex-president Jair Bolsonaro is returning home Thursday to reenter politics -- complicating life for his successor and nemesis, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

The far-right ex-army captain, who skipped town two days before Lula's inauguration on January 1, is due to arrive back in Brasilia on a commercial flight from Orlando, Florida at 7:10 am (1010 GMT).

It is a high-stakes bet for the former president, who is facing legal trouble on various fronts in Brazil -- notably for his alleged role in inciting supporters who rioted through the halls of power on January 8 in a failed bid to oust Lula, the veteran leftist who beat him in a divisive election in October.


It threatens to be a tense day in Brasilia, where authorities vowed to block supporters from holding a huge welcome rally at the airport.

Bolsonaro, 68, is set to start a new job next week as honorary president of his Liberal Party (PL), earning 41,600 reais (around $8,000) a month.

The ex-president (2019-2022), who recently rented a house in a gated community in Brasilia, has said he plans to criss-cross Brazil "doing politics" and "upholding the banner of conservatism."

But "I'm not going to lead any opposition," Bolsonaro told CNN Brasil as he prepared to board his flight.

"I'm going to participate with my party as someone with experience."

- Return of the 'Messiah' -

Authorities in Brasilia urged Bolsonaro supporters not to rally at the airport, saying police would be out in force to keep traffic flowing smoothly.

The Liberal Party appeared ready to keep the arrival low-key, saying Bolsonaro would travel from the airport to party headquarters, where his wife, Michelle, party president Valdemar Costa Neto and "other authorities" would be waiting to greet him in a closed-door event.

But hardline Bolsonaro backers have plans of their own.

There are viral calls on social media for supporters to flood the airport to welcome the man they call "Messiah" -- or "Messias," Bolsonaro's middle name.

Some supporters are planning to hold one of the ex-president's trademark motorcycle rallies, vowing: "Brasilia will come to a halt."

"Let's pave the way for Bolsonaro's return to the presidency," YouTube star-turned-Congressman Gustavo Gayer said in a video, calling for a massive turnout.

"Bolsonaro is the face of the right in Brazil," supporter Cassia Christina told AFP in Rio de Janeiro.

"His name revived the right wing and patriotism in this country," said the 32-year-old vendor.

The homecoming could reenergize the opposition, which has been weakened by Bolsonaro's self-imposed exile and the widespread backlash to the violence and destruction of the January 8 riots, when supporters trashed the presidential palace, Congress and the Supreme Court.

"We've had five months of a basically dismantled opposition. Now, Bolsonaro's return to Brazil looks set to unite the right," political analyst Jairo Nicolau of the Getulio Vargas Foundation told AFP.

"That could make a big difference. Lula will have to govern with a united opposition."

- Legal trouble -

But Bolsonaro faces numerous legal woes.

They include no less than five Supreme Court investigations that could potentially send him to jail -- including for allegedly inciting the January 8 riots -- and a recent scandal over allegations he tried to illegally import and keep millions of dollars' worth of jewelry given to him and his wife by Saudi Arabia in 2019.

Police summoned Bolsonaro Wednesday to give a deposition in the Saudi jewels case on April 5, officials told AFP.

He also faces 16 cases before Brazil's Superior Electoral Tribunal (TSE), which could strip him of his right to run for office for eight years, taking him out of the 2026 presidential race.

Bolsonaro has admitted he could face trouble.

Assessing his odds at a meeting with Brazilian business leaders in the United States earlier this month, he acknowledged he could be declared ineligible to run for office.

"But they won't send me to prison, unless there's some kind of arbitrary decision," he said.

msi/jhb/mlm/des


Bolsonaro: the Brazilian far-right's returning 'Messiah'

AFP
Wed, March 29, 2023 


Disconsolate over his "unjust" defeat in Brazil's divisive 2022 elections, Jair Bolsonaro was uncharacteristically quiet when he slipped out of Brazil in the twilight of his presidential term for a self-imposed exile in Florida.

Now, three months later, the vitriolic and polarizing far-right leader looks more like his old self as he returns home to reenter politics and resume being a thorn in the side of his successor, veteran leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Bolsonaro, 68, appears convinced he can return to power, despite facing legal trouble on various fronts in Brazil, where his 2019-2022 presidency was marked by scandals and crises ranging from his government's widely criticized handling of Covid-19 to his unproven claims of massive fraud in the election system.


Known for a brash, divisive style that earned him the nickname "Tropical Trump," Bolsonaro, an ex-army captain-turned-congressman, surged to national prominence as a presidential candidate in 2018 by playing to voters disgusted with Brazil's economic implosion and the massive "Car Wash" corruption scandal.

When he survived a knife attack during a campaign rally that September, perpetrated by an assailant later declared mentally unfit to stand trial, it only fueled followers' belief in their "Messias," or "Messiah" -- Bolsonaro's middle name.

He went on to win the election easily -- but his aura of invincibility soon faded.

- Tough talker -

A plain-speaking populist famous for his gloves-off style, Bolsonaro has a gift for riling up the right on social media with his attacks on "communism," "gender ideology" and political correctness.

He enjoys the support of the powerful "Bibles, bullets and beef" coalition -- Evangelical Christians, security hardliners and the agribusiness industry.

But he infuriates critics, often drawing accusations of racism, sexism and homophobia.

His popularity eroded as his administration floundered through various crises -- especially the coronavirus pandemic, which has now claimed 700,000 lives in Brazil, second only to the United States.

Bolsonaro mocked face masks, social distancing and vaccines, warning the latter could "turn you into an alligator."

He also faced an international outcry over the destruction of the Amazon rainforest, which surged on his watch.

The scandals and controversies continued through the end of his term, and beyond.

After narrowly losing last October's elections, Bolsonaro refused to congratulate Lula or concede defeat, silently brooding in the presidential palace.

He left Brazil for the United States two days from the end of his term, skipping Lula's January 1 inauguration.

A week later, rampaging Bolsonaro supporters invaded the presidential palace, Congress and the Supreme Court in a failed bid to oust Lula.

As Bolsonaro returns to Brasilia on Thursday, he faces an investigation into whether he incited the riot -- one of five Supreme Court investigations that could potentially send him to prison.

He also faces investigations over a scandal that broke this month, over allegations he tried to illegally import and keep millions of dollars' worth of jewelry given to him and his wife by Saudi Arabia in 2019.

And electoral authorities are weighing 16 cases against him, including for spreading disinformation on Brazil's electronic voting system.

If they bar him from running for office, it could take him out of the 2026 presidential race.

- Master of controversy -

Born in 1955 to a Catholic family with Italian roots, Bolsonaro served as an army paratrooper before starting his political career in 1988 as a Rio de Janeiro city councilor.

Openly nostalgic for Brazil's 1964-1985 military dictatorship, he was elected in 1990 to the lower house of Congress, where he served until becoming president.

He has ignited one explosive controversy after another with his remarks.

In 2011, he told Playboy magazine he would rather his sons be killed in an accident than come out as gay.

In 2014, he said a left-wing lawmaker was "not worth raping" because she was "too ugly."

In August 2020, he threatened to "pound" a journalist who asked him about allegations his wife, Michelle, 41 -- a telegenic Evangelical who has herself been touted as a potential presidential candidate -- received money from a political operative targeted in a corruption investigation.

Twice divorced, Bolsonaro has four sons -- three of them politicians -- and, in what he called a moment of "weakness," a daughter.

bur-jhb/mlm

Bolsonaro returns to Brazil for first time since election loss

Issued on: 30/03/2023 

02:04
Video by:Nicholas RUSHWORTH

Three months after leaving for the United States in the final hours of his term, Brazil's ex-president Jair Bolsonaro returned home Thursday to reenter politics, complicating life for his successor and nemesis, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The far-right ex-army captain, who skipped town two days before Lula's inauguration on January 1, arrived back in Brasilia on a commercial flight from Orlando, Florida, then headed to the headquarters of his Liberal Party (PL), flashing a thumbs-up as his motorcade pulled away. FRANCE 24's Charli James and Nicholas Rushworth explain.