We are living in a state of exception, the result of a coup in Brazil. It began with the ousting of legitimate president Dilma Rousseff and continues to trample over the rights gained over the years by Brazilian workers. Nothing remained untouched: labor rights, social security, education, social rights, agrarian reform, land titling for indigenous communities, the public health system, among others.
The role of the media in this plot involving Brazil’s Parliament, court system, and media was decisive, if not of leadership. The so-called "mainstream media” - especially Globo Network -, surrounded by a false sense of impartiality and democracy, paved the way for the coup in an alliance with the Judiciary, the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Congress. To this end, it used all its machinery to summon coup demonstrations presented as protests against corruption, made behind-the-scenes coordination processes with the established power, and used its economic power in favor of a break up with democracy. In that process, Globo manipulated the public opinion, told lies, and omitted facts.
Since the coup, the Brasil de Fato system (website, regional print tabloids, and radio network) has been denouncing the sponsors of this real attack on the people, which impacts mostly the poor. In addition, our editorial line is expressed as we report on the social achievements of recent years, especially as a result of the efforts of leftist governments at the federal, state, and municipal levels.
During such administrations, Brasil de Fato showed support to measures directed towards fulfilling the yearnings of the working class, while also making political claims when necessary. Now we consider that Brazil has reached a decisive moment that calls us to publish our editorial line regarding this key issue: Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. We understand that the former president was the main target of the coup, which aims to get him out of the presidential race, because the possibility of having Lula’s name on the ballots could represent the return of democracy with the working class as protagonist.
Lula is now a political prisoner and has been kidnapped by the abusive power of part of the Judiciary, given his conviction without evidence and the arbitrariness seen throughout the process. Defending the right of the former president to be a candidate is to ensure the validity of democratic rules. It is to respect the Constitution and give back to the people the reins of the future of the country. Depriving the former president of this right is another stage of the coup.
Edited by: Nina Fideles | Translated by Pilar Troya