On January 8, the eyes of the world turned to Brazil as hordes of far-right supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed and vandalized the buildings that house the Brazilian Supreme Court, Congress, and the presidential palace in Brasília.
They were protesting the presidential election results from a few months earlier, in which Mr. Bolsonaro narrowly lost to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Despite a complete lack of evidence, they claimed that the vote had been rigged.
The government’s response to the riots was swift, arresting more than 1,400 people at the scene and launching a federal intervention in the security apparatus of the capital, Brasília.
There were also calls to open a congressional inquiry to investigate the riots, but the Lula government quickly warned against such a move, preferring that investigations be handled by prosecutors and courts, not in the political theater of Congress. The government has since shifted its position, and a select committee to investigate the January 8 riots is due to be created shortly.
Congressional inquiries, commonly referred to as CPIs in Brazil, make up for their limited powers with their very public nature, being more suited to political point-scoring than actual accountability.
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This episode used music from Uppbeat. License codes: Aspire by Pryces (B6TUQLVYOWVKY02S). Curiosity and Creep by All Good Folks (HDG08NGGWJRBMY5W and D87XR9INNJUMASPU, respectively).
In this episode:
- Cedê Silva is The Brazilian Report’s Brasília correspondent. In addition to his journalism degree, Cedê holds a BA in international relations and covers Brazilian politics and international affairs.
Background reading on January 8:
- Since the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, many in Brazil feared that far-right supporters of Jair Bolsonaro would carry out similar acts of violence. It took two years and two days for those fears to be confirmed.
- On January 8, 2023, thousands of supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed buildings housing the federal government, Congress, and the Supreme Court, overwhelming police and creating chaotic and violent scenes in the heart of the country’s federal capital.
- Brazil’s Supreme Court on January 13 accepted a request from federal prosecutors to include Jair Bolsonaro in its investigation into the organization and financing of the January 8 riots. The former president is accused of inciting his supporters to commit acts of violence.
- Conclusions around January 8 are already set in stone for both sides of the aisle. The committee’s purpose is not an inquiry, but a new stage for a wrestling match between the government and the pro-Bolsonaro opposition.
- In the run-up to the 2022 election, Jair Bolsonaro consistently amplified his local version of the “Big Lie,” the falsehood peddled by Donald Trump that the 2020 U.S. election was stolen.
- Days before the runoff, the Bolsonaro campaign doubled down on allegations of unfair electoral rules. Some pro-Bolsonaro lawmakers even called (unsuccessfully) for the vote to be postponed.
- The Supreme Court ruled on Monday that a first batch of 100 people charged for the January 8 riots will stand trial for multiple crimes. The court has moved quickly to consider charges against another batch of 200 people, with the trial having begun on Tuesday.
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