Brazil: Anti-Lula protests in Sao Miguel do Oeste March 25 /update 5

Event

On Sunday, March 25, protests against former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva broke out in Sao Miguel do Oeste (Santa Catarina state), amid a pre-campaign tour organized by Lula in Brazil's southern states. According to local sources, protesters threw rocks at Lula's tour bus.

In addition, on Monday, March 26, an appeals court voted to uphold the corruption conviction against Lula, increasing the likelihood that he will be barred from running in the October 2018 presidential elections. Further pro- and anti-Lula rallies, heightened security measures, and localized transportation disruptions are expected in Rio Grande do Sul, Paraná, and Santa Catarina states during Lula's planned tour. Clashes between protesters and security personnel, along with other forms of violence, are possible at all protests.

Context

Former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva embarked on a tour of three southern states - Rio Grande do Sul, Paraná, and Santa Catarina - on Monday, March 19. The tour, which is expected to until Wednesday, March 28, is considered a pre-campaign tour to drum up support ahead of the October 2018 general elections. Pro- and anti-Lula demonstrations were witnessed in Lula's first stops in Rio Grande do Sul state in recent days, including in Bagé and Cruz Alta. Brazil's southern states, the sites of Lula's current pre-campaign tour, are reportedly among the areas of the country with the lowest support for the former president.

The tour comes as Lula faces a legal battle over a writ of habeas corpus submitted by his criminal defense team to avoid his imprisonment on a conviction of corruption and money laundering; Lula may be arrested if the Brazilian Supreme Federal Court denies Lula habeas corpus on April 4. In July 2017, Lula was found guilty of receiving BRL 2.25 million (USD 680,000) in bribes from the OAS construction company, in exchange for awarding the firm public contracts with state oil company Petrobras. He was sentenced to nine and a half years in jail but remained free on appeal; this appeal was rejected by the courts on January 24, when his sentence was increased to 12 years. His passport was ordered seized on January 25. Lula was president from 2003 to 2011 and, as the country's first working-class president, was and remains a popular figure among much of the population. His conviction is the highest-profile yet in a broad three-year corruption investigation in Brazil, called Operation Car Wash (Lava Jato). Lula's legal representatives have characterized the trial as a political witch hunt, intended to keep him out of office.

Advice

Individuals in Brazil, particularly in Rio Grande do Sul, Paraná, and Santa Catarina states, are advised to monitor developments to the situation, avoid all protests and demonstrations as a precaution, and adhere to all instructions issued by the local authorities.