Brazil is once again shaken by Jair Bolsonaro’s legal troubles. A parliamentary commission has just given its approval to send to justice a report containing new accusations against the former Brazilian president. These accusations include an attempted coup d’état.
This report, which is more than 1,300 pages long, will be examined by the Attorney General’s Office, which will decide whether to indict Jair Bolsonaro for four crimes: attempted coup d’état, attempted violent abolition of the rule of law, political violence and criminal association. If convicted, the ex-president faces up to 29 years in prison.
The parliamentary commission, made up of 32 deputies and senators, voted in favor of indicting Jair Bolsonaro with 20 votes for and 11 against. According to parliamentarians, he is responsible for attacks perpetrated against institutions, notably during the riots of January 8 in Brasilia, where Bolsonaro supporters ransacked places of power.
This report also calls for the indictment of 61 civilian and military figures, including former ministers of Jair Bolsonaro. The damage caused during the riots was considerable, reminiscent of the scenes of the storming of the Capitol in Washington by supporters of Donald Trump.
These new accusations come on top of the legal troubles already existing for Jair Bolsonaro. In June, the Federal Supreme Court declared him ineligible for eight years for “abuse of political power”, and he is also under investigation over WhatsApp conversations with businessmen advocating a coup .
This report marks an important step in the legal proceedings against Jair Bolsonaro and may have major political consequences. The Attorney General’s decision will therefore be eagerly awaited, as it will determine whether the former president will be indicted and tried for the accusations against him.
In a country often politically divided, this affair risks further increasing tension and accentuating divisions within Brazilian society. However, it also represents an opportunity for justice to shed light on the acts committed and to guarantee the primacy of the rule of law.
The future of Jair Bolsonaro is therefore uncertain, but one thing is certain: the legal troubles do not seem ready to calm down for the former Brazilian president.