‘I campaign wearing a bulletproof vest’ - Flavio Bolsonaro tells Brazil
Key Takeaways
- Flavio Bolsonaro said he campaigns wearing a bulletproof vest.
- He promised tougher penalties and measures targeting organised crime.
- The rally came ahead of Brazil's October 4 presidential election.
The presidential candidate used an Independence Day rally in Sao Paulo to outline tougher crime policies and attack President Lula and Supreme Court Minister Alexandre de Moraes.
Brazilian senator and presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro rallied thousands of supporters in Sao Paulo on Monday, using an Independence Day event to set out his vision for Brazil and promise tougher measures against crime.
Speaking to supporters on Avenida Paulista, Bolsonaro said he campaigns wearing protective gear and portrayed voters as his defence.
"I want to assure everyone that I campaign wearing a bulletproof vest. I put my chest on the line for the Brazilian people, because I know that, deep down, you, the Brazilian people and the Brazilian electorate, are the vest that defends our democracy today," he said.
Bolsonaro also presented his presidential bid as a protest and argued that Brazil could prosper under a different political direction.
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"This is the Brazil of the future I want: a Brazil where people do not have to rely on a politician simply to put food on the table. My candidacy is a protest, it seeks to show that Brazil can be fixed, that Brazil has a future and that Brazil can prosper," he said.
Security formed a major part of his speech. Bolsonaro said Comando Vermelho and militias would be classified as terrorist organisations. He also proposed lowering the age of criminal responsibility and introducing tougher sentences for crimes.
"I will work to approve chemical castration for rapists and abusers of women. Mobile phone thieves will serve a minimum sentence of eight years in prison and will have to work to pay for their own upkeep," he announced.
The rally also featured slogans against President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and criticism of Supreme Court Minister Alexandre de Moraes amid tensions between the court and Bolsonarismo.
"We must protect the Supreme Court from Alexandre de Moraes. That rotten apple cannot be allowed to contaminate the whole Court. The Supreme Court is not Alexandre de Moraes; the Judiciary is not Alexandre de Moraes; the magistracy is not Alexandre de Moraes," Bolsonaro said.
While Bolsonaro addressed supporters in Sao Paulo, Lula led a civic-military parade in Brasilia marking 204 years of Brazil's Independence. The events came ahead of the first round of the presidential election on October 4.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
