Lula condemns Brasília riots; court suspends capital’s governor

In the wake of Sunday’s episode, world leaders voiced their support for Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and condemned the riots as an attack against democracy.

President Alberto Fernández of Argentina said he and his country had “unconditional support” for Lula “in the face of this coup attempt that he is facing.” He added that people who “disregard the will of the majority” are a threat to democracy and deserve not only prosecution but “the absolute rejection of the international community.”

In the weeks leading up to Sunday’s violent attacks on Brazil’s congress, supreme court, and other government buildings, the country’s social media channels surged with calls to attack gas stations, refineries, and other infrastructure, as well as for people to come to a “war cry party in the capital,” according to Brazilian social media researchers.

Online influencers who deny the results of the country’s recent presidential election used a particular phrasing to summon “patriots" to what they called a “Festa da Selma,” tweaking the word “selva,” a military term for war cry, by substituting an "m" for the "v" in hopes of avoiding detection from Bazilian authorities, who have wide latitude to arrest people for “anti-democratic” postings online. “Festa” is the Portugueses word for “party.”

At least 12 journalists were attacked while reporting on the riots, the Union of Professional Journalists of the Brasília Federal District said.

They were kicked, threatened with firearms or forced to delete footage, the union said. Some of the journalists had their camera equipment stolen or damaged.

Among the assaults was a reporter working for The Washington Post. Marina Dias was interviewing a woman when protesters yelled at her, chased her, pushed her to the ground and kicked her repeatedly. The attackers pulled her hair and attempted to take her cellphone from her pants pocket. A navy officer entered the crowd and pulled her to safety.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva returned to Brasilia on Sunday after a visit to São Paulo state, walking past shattered windows and ripped artwork in the presidential palace in the capital. Two justices then took him to see the destruction at the Supreme Court, according to the local television station Globo.

“The terrorists who promote the destruction of public spaces in Brasilia are being identified and punished. Tomorrow we will resume work at the Presidential Palace. Democracy forever. Goodnight,” the president tweeted after his arrival.

RIO DE JANEIRO — For more than four years, the most fundamental of questions has loomed over Brazil: Would its young democracy survive the presidency of Jair Bolsonaro?

Latin America’s largest country embarked on what amounted to a test of its democratic strength in 2018 when it elected the former army captain who openly lamented the collapse of the country’s military dictatorship, once threatened to reinstall its rule on the first day of his presidency and sought at every turn to sow doubt in elections.

Protesters clad in green and yellow — the colors of Brazil’s flag — streamed down the street along with police on Sunday, before some left later in the evening seemingly unbothered, said one witness who watched the situation unfold from her hotel room.

Many of the protesters appeared to be arriving by car, with Brazilian flags hanging out the windows, said Victoria Stadheim, a U.K.-based academic who arrived to Brasilia on Thursday for a research trip. Other protesters were also heading toward the government buildings on foot, with Brazilian flags draped over their backs, she said.

The Brazilian president’s head of communications tweeted a video Sunday that shows what he says is an office left trashed after rioters set fire in the room.

Paulo Pimenta said people entered the office on the ground floor of the Planalto Palace, the president’s official workplace. Panning around the room, the camera shows a partially burned armchair and broken glass.

He said rioters opened gun cases and stole weapons. Every weapon taken, he said, is “another crime to be investigated.”

Pimenta stood with Justice Minister Wadih Damous, who said rioters also took ammunition and documents.

President Biden on Sunday night tweeted his support for democracy in Brazil and for the presidential administration of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Biden’s tweet read: “I condemn the assault on democracy and on the peaceful transfer of power in Brazil. Brazil’s democratic institutions have our full support and the will of the Brazilian people must not be undermined. I look forward to continuing to work with @LulaOficial.”