This Friday, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva granted an interview to CNN journalist Christiane Amanpour, during his trip to Washington, where he stated that the divisions affecting his country are no worse than the political divisions in the United States of America. .
Both Lula da Silva and his North American counterpart, Joe Biden, whom he will meet today, took over the presidential positions in a scenario of unfounded allegations of election fraud that led to attacks on the headquarters of the three powers in Brasília in 08 January, and against the US Capitol, on January 6, 2021, performed by supporters of his predecessors.
“We never imagined that in a country that was a symbol of democracy in the world, someone could try to invade the Capitol,” said the Brazilian head of state about the attacks in 2021 by supporters of former president Donald Trump.
Lula da Silva went on to classify Bolsonaro as a “staunch impersonator of Trump”, saying that both “don’t like unions, don’t like workers, don’t like women, don’t like blacks”.
However, the Brazilian leader said he is convinced that “not everyone who voted for Bolsonaro follows ‘Bolsonarianism'”.
Jair Bolsonaro has been in the US state of Florida since December last year, after applying for a tourist visa to stay longer in the US.
However, in the CNN interview, Lula da Silva stated that he “will not talk about it” with Biden: “One day he (Bolsonaro) must return to Brazil and face all the lawsuits against him”.
Bolsonaro faces “nearly 12 lawsuits in Brazil and more to come,” said Lula da Silva, adding that he believes his predecessor “will be convicted in an international court for the genocide in the face of covid-19 because half of the deaths in Brazil were the responsibility of the federal government”.
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva also claimed that Bolsonaro could be “punished” by the courts for “genocide against the indigenous Yanomami people” after illegal mining in protected areas surged during his tenure.
Brazil’s president traveled to Washington on Thursday, but his official schedule began today, with a meeting with Senator Bernie Sanders, followed by meetings with other Democratic Party congressmen and a group of union members, which will be followed by the meeting with Biden in the White House.
One of the main items on the agenda is the fact that Brazil and the US are facing similar challenges related to political radicalization and hate speech in the virtual space, which will be one of the approaches in what is Lula da Silva’s first visit to Washington since assuming his third term in January.
According to official sources, sustainable development and the fight against climate change will also be central to the agenda, with a focus on strengthening public-private partnerships and new investments in the field of energy transition.
Source: DN
