Brazilians protest to demand impeachment of President Jair Bolsonaro

Posted today at 00:01, updated at 01:55

FactualAt the call of the left, rallies against the head of state and the rising cost of living took place in 84 cities in Brazil on Saturday.

« Bolsonaro dehors ! » Tens of thousands of Brazilians demonstrated, Saturday, October 2, in several cities of the country, at the call of left movements and parties, to once again demand the dismissal of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro and denounce the increase in Cost of life.

The most important rallies were held in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo or Brasilia, at the call of the “National Bolsonaro Campaign out”, supported by a dozen left-wing parties and numerous central labor organizations.

Some right-wing and center-right leaders took their places in the parades to denounce the consequences of the economic crisis in the country, although not necessarily supporting the demand for impeachment.

If calls for demonstrations were launched in 167 cities of the country, a count of the Brazilian press reports that rallies were held in twenty-four of the twenty-seven states of Brazil and in 84 cities, including fourteen regional capitals.

“The people are hungry”

In the central Candelaria district of Rio de Janeiro, hundreds of people marched shouting « Bolsonaro dehors », a slogan also inscribed on many banners.

“We are going to release him, the bet of the people here in the streets is to put pressure on parliamentarians to demand the dismissal of Bolsonaro”69-year-old retired teacher Elizabeth Simoes told Agence France-Presse (AFP). “The people are hungry and we can no longer support this government”, launched Isadora Lessa, 22 years old.

“Let him know that he is not unanimous, that he is going to have trouble getting re-elected.” If he is not dismissed, he will lose the elections in 2022 “, said Marcelo Werneck, who wanted to take to the streets in Rio in tribute to the “Friends and family” deaths from Covid-19.

More than a hundred petitions calling for this dismissal are pending in the Chamber of Deputies, but its president, Arthur Lira, an ally of the government, is not taking any action. The Supreme Court has also ordered the opening of several investigations against Jair Bolsonaro and his relatives, in particular for the dissemination of false information.

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Inflation and unemployment

In Sao Paulo, tens of thousands of people gathered in the afternoon on central Paulista Avenue, where potential presidential candidates such as Ciro Gomes, leader of the Democratic Labor Party (PDT), gathered. came in third place in 2018. In Brasilia, hundreds of demonstrators gathered on the esplanade of the ministries.

Previous protests led by leftist movements aimed to demand the dismissal of Bolsonaro for his chaotic handling of the pandemic, which has left nearly 600,000 dead. Complaints were also heard on Saturday against rising prices for food, gas and fuel, as well as the unemployment rate – 14.1 million people are unemployed in Brazil.

One year before the presidential election, a poll carried out in mid-September by the Datafolha institute gave 26% to the far-right president in the 1^is turn, against 44% for Lula.

In the processions, many red flags of the Workers’ Party (PT) of former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (2003-2010) were visible, alongside those of other left and center organizations, but many demonstrators also waved Brazilian flags, colors that traditionally predominate during marches in support of the president.

On September 7, demonstrations in Brasilia and Sao Paulo had gathered 125,000 supporters of Jair Bolsonaro. More than what the left managed to bring together this Saturday in the two regional capitals.

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