Brasilia will double the police presence in the three public powers after the coup attempt

Army officers stand guard in front of the Planalto Palace, in Brasilia, Brazil, January 11, 2023 (REUTERS/Amanda Perobelli)

Brasilia will double the police presence to permanently reinforce the security of the headquarters of public powers invaded on January 8 by followers of Jair Bolsonaro in an attempted coup, the Federal District government reported on Monday.

Celina Leao, interim governor of the Federal District, said that they will move “immediately” from 240 to 500 military police stationed around the so-called Esplanade of the Ministries and the headquarters of the three public powers, which were vandalized by opponents of the president. from left Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a week after his inauguration.

“So that we can have maximum peace of mind and firm security,” Leao commented at a press conference together with the president of the Chamber, Arthur Lira, and the vice minister of Justice, Ricardo Cappelli.

Leao assumed the reins of the office after Governor Ibanéis Rocha was temporarily removed while it is determined why the security of the political heart of the capital failed.

The security of the Federal District has been under the control of the federal Executive by presidential decree since January 8, when radicalized followers of Bolsonaro invaded and looted the Planalto Palace, Congress and the Federal Supreme Court.

More than 2,000 people have been detained for the attacks that the government describes as “terrorist acts”, and some 1,159 continue to be detained, according to the latest balance.

File photo of supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro demonstrating outside Congress in Brasilia Jan 8, 2023. REUTERS/Adriano Machado

More than 800 detainees have already gone through preliminary hearings, a process that should end this Monday.

The authorities are also concentrating the investigations to determine who financed and ordered the assault, and tighten the siege around Bolsonaro.

The former president, in the United States since before the end of his term, denies connection to the assault but is suspected of being one of the instigators of the attack.

Federal police reported that they launched an operation this Monday in Rio de Janeiro to arrest three suspects of financing and organizing vandalism, road blockades and anti-democratic demonstrations in front of military installations.

Cappelli, designated as controller for the security of Brasilia by the Executive, said on Monday that the investigations seek to determine if there were “professionals” among the invaders at the headquarters of the three powers.

“There were men in the field with knowledge of the terrain, combat tactics, and professional characteristics among the protesters,” the controller said, citing a sergeant wounded in the revolt.

The moment of the invasion of the Brazilian Congress

Cappelli noted that 44 military policemen were wounded while defending the looted facility, where priceless furniture and art were ruined and even stolen during the violent invasion.

On the other hand, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva dismissed by decree the management of all the Brazilian public media as a result of their treatment of the seizure of the three public powers in Brasilia on January 8.

The decision was adopted on Friday night and includes the appointment of journalist Kariane Costa as president of the Brazilian Communication Company (EBC), on which key media outlets such as the Agencia Brasil news agency, TV Brasil or the Radio station depend. National. The measure implies the opening of a transition and reorganization process in the EBC that will last about 30 days, the Brazilian Presidency reported in a statement.

The Brazilian press highlights that the direction of these media outlets was still in the hands of officials appointed by the previous president, Jair Bolsonaro, whose supporters stormed Congress, the presidential palace and the seat of the Federal Supreme Court a week ago.

With information from AFP

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