Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva expressed his fear of "genocide" in his country, due to the strong opposition of the current President, Jair Bolsonaro, to the quarantine measures in order to limit the spread of the new Corona virus.
In an interview with Agence France-Presse, Lula said he supported the removal of the president from office, but he expressed concern about the domination of the military, who have "greater influence in government" since the dictatorship (1964-1985).
Brazil is one of the countries most affected by the emerging coronavirus, and it has recorded 14,000 deaths from the virus.
Bolsonaro calls daily to lift isolation measures, arguing that protecting the economy and jobs is a priority to avoid "social chaos".
The following is the text of the interview:
What do you think of the political tension regarding the emerging corona virus?
The government is turning people worried about the virus into enemies, and things can't go that way. I am a Catholic and I pray for saving the people from the genocide caused by Bolsonaro.
Last March, you expressed your opposition to Bolsonaro's dismissal. Did you change your mind?
What I wanted to say is that we cannot ask for the dismissal of a president the day after his election. First he must make fatal mistakes. But now I think he made many fatal mistakes. Damage to democracy, institutions and people. It does not even respect people who have died of the emerging coronavirus.
On the other hand, I believe that the request for removal should be submitted by a non-political entity, not by a party, in order to avoid being overly politicized.
How do you evaluate the location of the military within the government?
As an institution, the army is a guarantor of our sovereignty. They (the military) can contribute greatly to order and peace in our country, but they cannot be aligned to any side. Their party is Brazil. But here we see Bolsonaro placing the military in many positions.
Today there are more soldiers than civilians in the Presidential Palace. The military takes the lead. Our country is not a military barrack. It must be governed with the greatest possible degree of democracy. The military does not necessarily know how to run a democracy.
| Da Silva supports the removal of the President and at the same time he fears the return of the military hegemony (Getty Images) |
I think they have a big stake in the decision-making process by Bolsonaro. Every time he says something stupid, the military surrounds him the next day. If the Minister of Health gives an interview, there is a general next to him. The military has more influence in government today than during the dictatorship when the generals were presidents.
Why the left was unable to play the role of the opposition in the first row?
The left opposes the government every day, in the Congress (parliament), and in social and trade union movements. The difference is that we are not on the street.
Many of those who elected Bolsonaro only realized now that he was unable to be President of the Republic. I am confident that the right is not used to tolerating a president who is so urbanized.
Could the Labor Party you lead be part of a broad opposition front that includes to the right of the center?
Hard to imagine. We must know the difference between building an expanded front and an electoral alliance. If the Labor Party participates in an alliance, it will be an alliance of the left. Here in Brazil we have thirty parties and public funds to finance the election campaigns of each party. Few are parties willing to give up, and parties do not want to lose their independence.