[ad_1]
BRASILIA, Sept. 7 (AP) President Jair Bolsonaro on Wednesday called Brazil’s bicentennial an opportunity to celebrate the country’s glorious history, but critics say he has Turning what was supposed to be a day of unity into a campaign they fear he will use to derail next month’s elections in Latin America’s fourth-largest democracy.
Bolsonaro, trailing in opinion polls ahead of the Oct. 2 vote, urged Brazilians to take to the streets, with tens of thousands of his supporters expected to show up in Brasilia, Sao Paulo and his hometown of Rio de Janeiro to showcase Strength. The military plans to hold exhibitions in the capital and in Rio, where Bolsonaro will be present.
Also read | Sheikh Hasina India visit: India and Bangladesh sign seven MoUs.
The far-right nationalist has been on a mission to encourage Brazilian patriotism for years and has made green and yellow his national colors. He has stacked his government with military officers and has repeatedly sought their support, most recently questioning the reliability of the nation’s electronic voting system without evidence.
His attacks on the voting system have sparked widespread concern among his opponents that he could follow in the footsteps of former U.S. President Donald Trump and reject the election result. Analysts said they would keep a close eye on inflammatory speech on Wednesday.
Also read | Five Pakistani army personnel were killed in intelligence operations in the North Waziristan tribal area.
“Bolsonaro and his supporters turned this day into the biggest day of the entire campaign. So he has to offer some kind of red meat,” said Brian Wing, vice president for policy at the Americas Association/Council of the Americas. Te said. “But everyone wonders if he’s going to cross that line and create a real institutional crisis.”
After the military parade in Brasilia, Bolsonaro will take part in another exhibition at Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana beach, where his supporters often demonstrate. The latter will require rifle salutes, cannon fire, flyovers, paratroopers and warships anchored at sea.
But Rio won’t see the big marches announced by the president rather than the annual nonpartisan event downtown. Instead, Rio’s mayor and military leaders opted for a more modest display at a beach location designated by the president.
Bolsonaro, a former army captain and lawmaker for decades before winning the 2018 presidential election, spent much of his first term sparring with Supreme Court justices, some of whom were Senior members of electoral authorities.
He has accused some judges of hindering his government and favoring former President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva, the polling front-runner, in an attempt to return to the position he held from 2003-2010. That effectively turned these figures and their institutions into enemies of Bolsonaro’s base, which makes up about a quarter of the electorate.
When Bolsonaro launched his re-election bid on July 24, he asked supporters to show their support “one last time” on Independence Day. “Those deaf people in black robes must understand what the voice of the people is,” he said, referring to the judges.
The National Guard will step up security outside the Supreme Court building on Wednesday, and police will search people at checkpoints around the square, where military displays and subsequent rallies will be held.
Bolsonaro’s stance on Independence Day has softened since the start of his campaign. In the southern city of Curitiba last week, he told supporters to drop banners calling for a military coup. In a TV commercial released on Tuesday, he urged people to attend the 200th anniversary in “peace and harmony”.
Carlos Ranulfo de Mello, a political scientist at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, said this may reflect a campaign strategy to avoid fiery rhetoric and instead focus on improving the economy.
But Rodrigo Plando, a professor of political science at Mackenzie Presbyterian University in São Paulo, said he expected Bolsonaro to oppose electronic voting systems and the Supreme Court.
The president is known for his improvisations. At last year’s Independence Day rally, he announced that he would ignore the Supreme Court justice’s ruling, pushing the country to the brink of an institutional crisis. He later turned around and said his comments were on a whim, and the boiling tension was eased.
People have been worried about political violence. Last year, some of his die-hard supporters tried to storm the Supreme Court. In July, a federal prison officer killed Da Silva Workers’ Party official as he celebrated his birthday, and witnesses said he shouted in support of Bolsonaro before pulling the trigger.
Newspapers such as the Estadao de S. Paulo reported on Aug. 19 that military intelligence had identified the risk that the radical pro-Bolsonaro movement was trying to infiltrate the Bicentennial celebrations to provoke unrest and defend military intervention.
“If the ballots don’t meet the Bolsonaristas’ requirements, there’s a movement trying to legitimize the coup,” said Tai Nalon, co-founder of fact-checking agency AosFatos. “You don’t have that in 2018.”
Members of Bolsonaro’s campaign wanted him to leave a message. Bolsonaro’s Liberal vice-chairman, Congressman Joao Augusto Rosa, told The Associated Press that he would like to see the president reach undecided voters, especially those receiving more benefits under his administration. poorer Brazilians.
“We have to show all the good we can get for them,” the congressman, Capitão Augusto, said by phone. “This is not the time to preach to those who have converted, but to those who can still change their minds.” (The Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from the Syndicated News feed, the body of the content may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
[ad_2]
Source link