“Military intervention” called for: Thousands demonstrate for Bolsonaro


“Military intervention” required
Thousands demonstrate for Bolsonaro

Traditionally, May 1st is also a labor movement day in Brazil. This year, however, there are fewer red flags than green and yellow, the national colors of Brazil, said President Bolsonaro. Some of his supporters openly call for a military coup.

On May 1, thousands of people demonstrated for President Jair Bolsonaro in several Brazilian cities. Despite the corona pandemic, they gathered in big cities like Brasília, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Most of the participants were dressed in the colors of the Brazilian flag and did not adhere to the rules of distance. At a trade union event, ex-president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who is considered a promising opponent for Bolsonaro in next year’s election, spoke.

In Rio, several hundred demonstrators on the famous Copacabana beach called for a “military intervention” in support of the right-wing radical head of state. Bolsonaro recently complained that some mayors and governors had taken strict corona measures. He later called for soldiers on the streets to ensure people’s freedom of movement.

Bolsonaro, who suffered from Covid-19 himself, repeatedly played down the pandemic. He also questioned the effectiveness of vaccines. So far 400,000 people have died of Covid-19 in Brazil.

“Sad May Day”

“Red flags used to be waved on May 1st as if we were a socialist country. I’m happy to see green and yellow flags all over the country, with people who really work,” Bolsonaro said at an event on a farm.

At one of the few counter-events in the country, the leader of the left, Lula, appeared alongside other opposition politicians from all camps. Lula’s predecessor, center-right Fernando Henrique Cardoso, was also present at the union rally. “This is a sad May Day holiday for our country’s workers, a day of mourning for the 400,000 lives we lost to Covid-19 – many of them because the Bolsonaro government refused to buy the vaccines they were offering,” said Lula.

Brazil is one of the countries hardest hit by the pandemic in the world. It has the highest number of corona deaths after the United States. A mutant of the virus has recently spread in the country, which is considered particularly contagious and has since been found in numerous other countries.

.