Political meltdown and corruption accusations increase tensions in Brazil
Brazil’s political climate is slowly melting down amidst anti-government protests held in 45 cities across the country.
In the past week, millions of Brazilian citizens have taken to the streets to protest the removal and impeachment of current President Dilma Rousseff and her predecessor Luiz Inacio “Lula” Da Silva. Both politicians are members of the left-leaning Workers’ party.
In a two-year investigation entitled “Operacao Lava Jato,” or “Operation Car Wash,” prosecutors have uncovered what they call a billion-dollar scandal between the government and big-oil corporation Petrobras, which goes back to when President Rousseff served as chairwoman on the company’s board of directors.
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The scandal has touched many members in President Rousseff’s inner circle through tapped phone calls between the president and Da Silva. However, President Rousseff and the Workers’ party have complained that Brazil’s mainstream media—which is monopolized by right-wing conglomerates—is using the scandal for political upheaval.
The decision to release the private conversations between President Rousseff and Da Silva, as well as President Rousseff’s reaction, fueled the anger of both protesters and supporters. Judge Sergio Moro’s decision to release the tapes has transformed him into a hero for protesters, and a coup-monger for supporters.
“This is very [bad] journalism because there is no proof,” said Pepe Escobar, an author and journalist, in a conversation with Al Jazeera. “It’s just innuendo. For the developing world, this is one of the most important stories of the past few years and the foreseeable future because it’s a corruption war. It’s a political and economic crisis, mixed with an information war at the same time. So everyone has to pay attention.”
Historian, and Brazil specialist at Duke University, John French, stated that the protests mark a conservative backlash against Brazil’s changing social order.
“They’re discomforted by the fact that people are rising to places they’re not supposed to be,” said French, in an interview with Agence France-Presse.
According to polling firm Datafolha, 77 per cent of protesters in Sao Paulo self-identified as white, while 77 per cent self-identified as university educated. In contrast, 45 per cent of protestors across Brazil self-identified as white while 13 per cent self-identified as university-educated.
Furthermore, half of protestors last weekend earned somewhere between five and 20 times average Brazilian minimum wage.
“There is a possibility of conflict on the streets,” said Esther Solano, a professor of social sciences at the Federal University of São Paulo, when he spoke to The Guardian. “People are so angry that if there is any kind of provocation, it will be hard to avoid confrontation.”
Blacks make up 50.7 per cent of the within the country’s 200 million people, and a large part of the 7.3 per cent of those who live in poverty, a number that fell from 25.2 per cent in 2003.