BRASÍLIA: The Brazilian government boosted security around its buildings in the capital Wednesday ahead of another planned protest by followers of ex-president Jair Bolsonaro who stormed the presidency, Congress and Supreme Court over the weekend.
Main roads leading to the so-called Esplanade of Ministries that houses multiple government buildings in Brasilia will be blocked to traffic and pedestrians, deputy justice minister Ricardo Cappelli said.
“All the public security forces are mobilized,“ Cappelli told reporters in the capital.
“There is no scenario under which the unacceptable events that occurred on the 8th (of January) will be repeated,“ he added.
Cappelli was appointed by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to command the security forces of Brasilia after Sunday’s riot, which included clashes with police and extensive damage to government buildings.
In scenes reminiscent of the January 6, 2021 storming of the US Capitol, “bolsonaristas” tore paintings and damaged furniture, broke windows and invaded the offices of judges, lawmakers and the presidency itself.
The full extent of the damage is still being assessed.
Hundreds were arrested in the aftermath and Brasilia has been calm since the security forces on Monday rounded up groups of Bolsonaro supporters camped out in the capital for weeks calling for the military to oust Lula.
Bolsonaristas nonetheless called fresh protests for Wednesday in several cities -- including at the Esplanade of Ministries in Brasilia.
The rallying call of the protesters is to “take back power” from leftist Lula, who beat Bolsonaro in October elections by a razor-thin margin.
Lula, who met representatives of Congress in Brasilia on Wednesday, described the protesters as “a group of crazy people who do not understand that the election is over.”
“I don’t even want to think of this as a coup, it is something minor,“ the president added. -AFP