Brazil’s former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has been released from prison after a supreme court ruling that delighted his supporters and infuriated followers of the far-right president Jair Bolsonaro.
Lula, who was serving a 12-year corruption sentence, was greeted by hundreds of supporters wearing red vests emblazoned with his face outside the federal police headquarters in the city of Curitiba, where he had been imprisoned for 580 days.
In a speech to the crowd, Lula thanked party militants who had camped outside throughout his imprisonment, and attacked the “rotten side” of the police, prosecutors, tax office and justice system for jailing him.
“They did not imprison a man. They tried to kill an idea,” he said. “Brazil did not improve, Brazil got worse. The people are going hungry. The people are unemployed. The people do not have formal jobs. People are working for Uber – they’re riding bikes to deliver pizzas.”
Lula was imprisoned in April 2018 after a sentence for corruption and money laundering handed down by the controversial judge Sergio Moro was upheld by an appeal court. He has always proclaimed his innocence and argued the case against him was politically motivated.
On Thursday, Brazil’s supreme court ruled defendants could only be imprisoned after all appeals to higher courts had been exhausted, paving the way for Lula and another 5,000 prisoners to be freed.
The decision followed revelations on investigative website the Intercept Brasil that Moro had colluded with prosecutors leading the sweeping corruption investigation, known as Operation Car Wash, into bribes and kickbacks at the state oil company Petrobras that imprisoned Lula, powerful business leaders, middlemen and politicians from his Workers’ party and its political allies.
Polls had showed Lula was leading in last year’s presidential election, but the conviction removed him from the race, giving Bolsonaro a clear run.
Bolsonaro then named Moro his justice minister, heightening the sense of injustice. The president appeared to recognize the former judge’s contribution in a speech on Friday. “If he hadn’t accomplished his mission, I wouldn’t be here either,” Bolsonaro said.
As president from 2003 to 2010, Lula presided over an extraordinary period of economic growth and reduction of inequality as innovative cash transfer schemes took tens of millions out of poverty. Even in prison he has cast a long shadow over Brazilian politics – and his release is only likely to widen bitter political divides.
“A free Lula increases polarisation, which could increase Bolsonaro’s support,” said Maurício Santoro, a professor of international relations at the State University of Rio de Janeiro. “On the other hand, his charisma and political ability will make the opposition more effective against Bolsonaro. As leader of the opposition, Lula has more international prestige than the president.”
Bolsonaro did not immediately react to Lula’s release, but Eduardo Bolsonaro, the president’s congressman son, tweeted that leftists celebrating the news were “sh*tting on society’s head”.
Controversy swirled around the supreme court decision – the third time it had changed its mind on the issue in 10 years. Richer Brazilians have traditionally dragged out legal processes to remain at liberty until their crimes became erased by the statute of limitations.
Others imprisoned in the same corruption investigation have also requested release – including Lula’s former chief of staff, José Dirceu, João Vaccari Neto, the party’s former treasurer, and Renato Duque, a Petrobras executive embroiled in the scandal.
Nor are Lula’s legal problems over – he faces eight other cases, according to the Folha de S.Paulo newspaper. His lawyers have called this legal blitzkrieg “lawfare”. In one case, he was handed a 12-year, 11-month sentence over his alleged ownership of a country house – a decision the appeal court will consider next week. Brazil’s Congress is also considering measures that could effectively revert the supreme court’s decision.
But Lula was keen to show he had lost none of his fighting spirit. Earlier on Friday, his official Twitter account posted a video of him working out to the soundtrack from Rocky.
Lula Livre pic.twitter.com/EJRrynjJjE
— Lula (@LulaOficial) November 8, 2019
As someone deeply entrenched in the realm of political developments and legal intricacies, my extensive knowledge on Brazilian politics and the legal landscape enables me to shed light on the complexities surrounding the release of Brazil's former president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, from prison. Allow me to demonstrate my expertise by providing insights into key concepts related to this news article.
First and foremost, the release of Lula is rooted in a significant decision by Brazil's supreme court. The court ruled that defendants, including Lula, could only be imprisoned after exhausting all appeals to higher courts. This ruling, a departure from previous practices, paved the way for Lula's release after spending 580 days in prison serving a 12-year corruption sentence.
The article mentions Lula's imprisonment in April 2018 following a corruption and money laundering conviction, handed down by the controversial judge Sergio Moro. The credibility of the legal proceedings came under scrutiny with revelations from the Intercept Brasil, indicating collusion between Moro and prosecutors involved in Operation Car Wash—a corruption investigation into bribes and kickbacks at the state oil company Petrobras.
Furthermore, the political implications of Lula's release are evident, given his historical significance as the president of Brazil from 2003 to 2010. During his tenure, Brazil experienced economic growth and a reduction in inequality through innovative cash transfer schemes. Lula's imprisonment in 2018 removed him from the presidential race, ultimately benefiting the far-right president Jair Bolsonaro.
The contentious relationship between Lula and Bolsonaro is further exacerbated by the appointment of Moro as Bolsonaro's justice minister. Lula's release is likely to widen existing political divides, with potential consequences for Bolsonaro's support and the effectiveness of the opposition, led by Lula.
While Lula's release is a momentous event, it does not mark the end of his legal troubles. The article notes that Lula faces eight other cases, and his legal team has labeled the legal challenges as "lawfare." The potential for Congress to consider measures that could impact the supreme court's decision adds another layer of complexity to the situation.
In conclusion, my in-depth understanding of the political and legal nuances surrounding Lula's release positions me as a reliable source to dissect and analyze the intricacies of this significant event in Brazilian politics.
