Demonstrators wreak havoc in downtown Brasília
Demonstrators in support of President Jair Bolsonaro attempted to storm the Federal Police headquarters in Brasília following the arrest of indigenous man José Acácio Serere Xavante, as ruled by Supreme Court chief Justice Alexandre de Moraes. The protests spread through the central region of the Brazilian capital with cars and buses set on fire, the military police reported.
The Supreme Court declared that Serere had been accused of “illicit conduct in antidemocratic acts.” His detention was requested by the Office of the Attorney-General for a period of ten days in a bid to ensure public order.
According to the decision, Cacique Serere (“Chief Serere”), as he is known, has in recent days held “antidemocratic demonstrations” in front of the National Congress, at the Brasília airport, in a shopping mall, and outside the hotel where President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is staying.
In the request for his imprisonment, Serere is said to have “been using his position as chief of the Xavante people to bring indigenous and non-indigenous people together” to commit crimes such as threats of aggression against Lula and Supreme Court justices.
In their social media, the Federal Police stated they executed Justice Moraes’s arrest order, further noting that Serere Xavante “has been accompanied by lawyers, with all formalities linked to his arrest adopted under the law, safeguarding his physical and moral integrity.”
Security
At no point was President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva at risk, future Justice Minister Flávio Dino said at a press conference on Monday evening, the day Lula’s electoral victory was definitively ratified during a ceremony at the Superior Electoral Court.
In a note, the Public Security Department of the Federal District stated that security forces have stepped up their scheme throughout the central area of the Brazilian capital “in order to control civil unrest, traffic, and possible fires. Operations began outside the building of the Federal Police headquarters, as a result of the execution of an arrest warrant, and extended to other places in the downtown area.”
“Finally, we would like to point out that the vicinity of the hotel where the president-elect is staying has had its surveillance scheme reinforced by tactical teams and the Military Police of the Federal District,” the local security authorities declared.
Repercussion
The country’s minister of Justice and Public Security, Anderson Torres, wrote on his social media that “nothing justifies the regrettable scenes we have witnessed in downtown Brasília.” “The federal capital traditionally hosts peaceful and orderly demonstrations—and it will continue to be the case!” He also thanked the Public Security Department of the Federal District and the Federal District government for the support given to the Federal Police. “Everything will be investigated,” he underscored.
