Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies approved on Tuesday (9) the “Coup Leniency Bill” (PL da Dosimetria), which proposes lighter penalties for those convicted over the January 8 attacks on the government headquarters in Brasília. The vote took place despite a violent episode involving left-wing Congressman Glauber Braga (PSOL-RJ), who was assaulted and forcibly removed from the chamber floor. The measure passed with 291 votes in favor and 148 against.
The bill establishes that those convicted for the coup attempt may be transferred to a less restrictive prison regime after serving only one-sixth of their sentence in a closed regime. The proposal received support from center-right parties such as União Brasil, Republicans, MDB, and Progressistas.
The rapporteur, Congressman Paulinho da Força, presented his report earlier in the day, and the Speaker of the House announced that the vote would take place that same afternoon. The government said it was caught off guard by the sudden scheduling.
In his speech, Paulinho thanked several right-wing politicians for drafting the bill, saying that it was “not an act of forgetting, but an act of reconciliation” so that society would not remain “hostage to a recent past.”
The approval benefits not only the rioters who invaded and vandalized federal buildings but also former president Jair Bolsonaro. Bolsonaro was sentenced to 27 years and 3 months in prison, but the new rules could allow his release after just six years. Under current legislation, he would remain in a closed regime until 2033.
Far-right lawmakers celebrated the vote. Chanting “amnesty now,” they compared leniency for Bolsonaro supporters to the historic Amnesty Law granted to those who fought the military dictatorship, and even to the annulment of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s conviction.
Workers’ Party (PT) House leader Lindbergh Farias criticized the timing of the vote, carried out late at night when fewer people could follow the session. He also questioned the decision to resume proceedings after the violent clashes earlier in the day.
“You are holding a vote on an issue of extreme importance at 11:30 p.m. At least have the decency to hold it under daylight. The decision to vote today was made last night with lawmakers from the centrist bloc. We are tearing up the Constitution. This is an attack on democracy,” he said.
The vote came two days after Senator Flávio Bolsonaro suggested his presidential run would “come at a price”, a remark widely interpreted as pressure to pass the leniency bill.
Within the government, the prevailing assessment is that Speaker Hugo Motta made a political gesture by putting the bill to a vote, especially because the previous item approved was a priority measure for the administration, a bill combating large-scale tax evaders to increase revenue next year.
Senate promises swift vote
Senate President Davi Alcolumbre announced that his chamber would vote on the bill as soon as it arrives. He said the goal is to approve it directly on the Senate floor, bypassing committee analysis.
“I made a commitment that if the Lower House deliberates on this matter, the Senate will do the same,” he declared. “We will vote as soon as it arrives. Still this year.”
His remarks came during a Senate session. Senator Otto Alencar argued the bill should first be examined by the Constitution and Justice Committee (CCJ), calling it a “sensitive” proposal with profound national political impact.
“President, voting on it this year? It leaves there [the Lower House], arrives here, and we vote it immediately? Allow me to disagree, because it is not possible to skip the CCJ. It spent months in the Lower House. Will it get here and be voted on right away?” he questioned.
