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A few weeks before the most polarized elections in its recent history, Brazil is experiencing an intense pre-campaign climate. The current far-right president Jair Bolsonaro and the former leftist president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva are the candidates that appear the most in these elections. Both have carried out some campaign events in different parts of the country, however, the violence has complicated the political scene.
The campaign for the presidential elections in Brazil, to be held in October, has not even started, and there have already been several episodes of violence against left-wing candidates.
The first occurred on June 15 in the city of Uberlandia, in the State of Minas Gerais. A drone launched feces and urine on the public waiting for former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, of the Workers’ Party (PT), in a pre-campaign event. The Minas Gerais Military Police detained a man suspected of being responsible for the attack.
Something similar happened in Rio de Janeiro on July 7, when Lula starred in another PT pre-election event in the center of the city. A homemade bomb, which also contained feces, was thrown on the crowd that packed the Cinelandia square. There were no serious injuries, although one woman reported burns to her arm.
Two days later, Marcelo Arruda, treasurer of the PT in Foz Iguaçu, a tourist city in southern Brazil, was shot dead at his 50th birthday party. The assassin, who shot while shouting “Here is Bolsonaro”, was also seriously injured. Marcelo Arruda was a municipal guard and admired Lula so much that his party venue had been decorated with several photos of the leftist leader. The killer, Jorge da Rocha Guaranho, broke into the party and shot Marcelo, who tried to defend himself with his service weapon.
The Police arrested the murderer, hospitalized in serious condition, but ruled out any political motivation in this event. Investigators are treating the case as a premeditated homicide, something that has sparked outrage among supporters of the left. Guaranho was able to access the images of the theme party in real time on his mobile phone thanks to the collaboration of Claudinei Coco Esquarcini, the person in charge of security at the club where Arruda was celebrating his birthday. A few days later, Esquarcini mysteriously passed away. Police are investigating the reasons for his death.
The rivalry Lula – Bolsonaro moves in aggressions in the streets and political rallies
Finally, on July 16, Marcelo Freixo, a left-wing federal deputy who aspires to the position of governor of the State of Rio de Janeiro, was attacked in a square in Rio de Janeiro by Rodrigo Amorim, a well-known right-wing politician. It happened during a demonstration against the recent assassination of the PT treasurer. Rodrigo Mondego, a human rights lawyer and PT candidate for the Rio de Janeiro Parliament, reported the events to the Police. He accuses Amorim and his bodyguards of verbally and physically assaulting protesters.
“His supporters were armed. There were shoves, they destroyed our flags and violently interrupted our peaceful march”, assures this jurist. “Anyone who is committed to the process of civilization in Brazil, to democracy, to the democratic rule of law, has only one option: elect Lula as president. In October it is Lula or barbarism. If Bolsonaro remains in power, the possibility of violence being practiced against those who think differently will be even greater”, he adds.
In an official statement, Rodrigo Amorim stated that deputy Marcelo Freixo’s team began to offend his family and that of Bolsonaro. He also accused Freixo and his followers of victimizing themselves.
For his part, the president of Brazil denied any responsibility in the murder of the PT treasurer, after being accused of inciting violence with his provocative speeches.
Bolsonaro’s supporters back their leader’s words. “The main strategy of our opponents on the left is to accuse us of what they do. We are going to maintain sobriety, run a clean campaign and let the people choose,” says Charles Batista da Silva, a deputy in Rio de Janeiro and a candidate for the National Congress.
It should be remembered that in September 2018, Jair Bolsonaro himself was the victim of a stab wound to the abdomen during a campaign rally in the municipality of Juiz de Fora, in the State of Minas Gerais.
Bolsonaro suffered five injuries to his large intestine and small intestine, and had to undergo emergency surgery. At the time, the Brazilian president stated that he was the victim of a “political attack.”
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