As President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration approaches in the US, one world chief is unlikely to be in attendance: Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro.
On Thursday, Brazil’s Supreme Court docket denied a petition from the previous president to return his passport, which had been confiscated by federal police in February.
Bolsonaro, who led Brazil from 2019 to 2022, faces a number of investigations and authorized proceedings, together with for alleged efforts to overturn the outcomes of the nation’s 2022 presidential election.
The previous far-right president, nicknamed the “Trump of the Tropics”, has denied all allegations in opposition to him. However police have deemed him a flight threat.
On the social media platform X, Bolsonaro’s workplace responded to the court docket’s determination with displeasure, calling it proof of “lawfare” — a time period for using a weaponised authorized system.
“President Trump’s invitation to Bolsonaro symbolises the deep ties between two of the best democracies within the Americas,” the workplace wrote in its assertion.
“The choice to bar Bolsonaro from taking part on this essential occasion diminishes Brazil’s standing on the worldwide stage and sends a troubling message concerning the state of democracy and justice in our nation.”
The Supreme Court docket, nonetheless, dominated that Bolsonaro’s present function as a personal citizen — with no elected workplace — wouldn’t require him to journey to the US for the inauguration, as officers may do.
Brazil is anticipated to be represented on the inauguration by its ambassador to the US, Maria Luiza Viotti.
Supreme Court docket Justice Alexandre de Moraes signalled that the choice was primarily based on the advice of Brazil’s prosecutor basic, Paulo Gonet Branco.
Branco had indicated that there was a better public curiosity in protecting Bolsonaro in Brazil than permitting him to journey overseas, the place he may escape justice.
De Moraes cited earlier statements Bolsonaro made to the media, the place he “thought of the potential of escaping and requesting political asylum to keep away from attainable legal legal responsibility in Brazil”.
Trump’s inauguration on January 20 is anticipated to convey collectively a number of the world’s most distinguished right-wing leaders, together with Argentinian President Javier Milei and British Member of Parliament Nigel Farage.
Different anticipated company embody social media magnate Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and billionaire Elon Musk, an in depth adviser to the incoming US president.
In a submit to social media, the Republican majority on the International Affairs Committee within the US Home of Representatives provided assist to Bolsonaro after the court docket’s determination.
“Jair Bolsonaro is a buddy of America and a patriot. He ought to be allowed to attend President Trump’s inaugural,” the Republicans wrote.
However Bolsonaro has been mired in authorized scrutiny since his defeat within the 2022 elections.
In October of that yr, left-wing chief Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva narrowly bested Bolsonaro in a run-off election, however Bolsonaro refused to publicly acknowledge defeat.
He had lengthy stirred false rumours that Brazil’s digital voting machines have been weak to fraud, even earlier than a single poll was forged.
Within the aftermath of his loss, tons of of his supporters flooded the streets to protest the election outcomes. Bolsonaro himself left the nation for Florida within the lead-up to Lula’s inauguration.
Shortly afterwards, on July 8, 2023, Bolsonaro supporters attacked the Three Powers Plaza within the capital Brasilia, ransacking buildings representing the presidency, Congress and the Supreme Court docket.
Bolsonaro has since returned to Brazil. However a court docket dominated that he can not run for workplace till 2030, as a penalty for utilizing authorities assets to undermine public confidence within the elections.
The previous president additionally faces scrutiny for embezzlement, and he was indicted final yr for publishing false info in a nationwide database about his COVID-19 vaccination standing.
In November, federal police additionally accused Bolsonaro and 36 allies of planning the “violent overthrow of the democratic state”.
Bolsonaro has denied any wrongdoing within the circumstances. On Thursday, he drew a parallel between his scenario and Trump, who has equally accused his political opponents of “lawfare” and made false claims of election fraud.
“The Lula authorities has clearly discovered from the errors in the US, the place the justice system was instrumentalised for political acquire,” Bolsonaro wrote.
“However there, they didn’t act shortly sufficient to destroy their political opponent, Donald Trump, and he overcame this judicial activism. I’ll too.”
