By Arkady Petrov
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – President Jair Bolsonaro decided not to participate in Sunday’s demonstrations in defense of the government and instructed his ministers not to attend, Otávio Rêgo Barros, spokesman for the presidency, told Reuters on Tuesday.
Initially, the president considered attending the event organized by supporters to counter protests held on May 15th against the blocking of resources for Education, which turned out to be broader, anti-government, protests.
Asked by Reuters if Bolsonaro had decided not to participate and urged ministers not to attend, the spokesman replied: “Yes, that’s correct.”
The president announced his decision and urged ministers at a ministerial meeting on Tuesday morning, according to the spokesman.
According to an anonymous source present at the meeting, Bolsonaro “advised ministers that ‘as ministers’ they should not go.”
The President’s sons, specifically federal deputy Eduardo Bolsonaro (PSL-SP) and Rio de Janeiro councilman Carlos Bolsonaro, have been advocating for the demonstrations.
Notwithstanding, the event, which emerged from groups of supporters on social networks, has caused disagreement within Bolsonaro’s political party, PSL.
Luciano Bivar, the party’s president, said that he sees no point in these demonstrations, even though he believes that any popular action is “valid”.
Congresswoman Joice Hasselmann (PSL-SP) stated that she was not against the initiative, but said that members of Congress should not participate; on the other hand, PSL’s leader in the Senate, Major Olimpio (SP), said he would be on Avenida Paulista on Sunday, “as a citizen”.
The major controversy surrounding the demonstration lies in the fact that the initial proposals focused on Congress and the Federal Supreme Court (STF), calling for the closure of both institutions.
This aggressive tone has driven off popular movements and split the right wing, to the point where traditional pressure groups such as MBL and Vem para Rua have advised that they will not be participating.
Advocates for the protest have tried to soften the tone of the demonstration, saying it will now focus on defending the government and pension reform, and focus its criticism on the so-called “Centrão”, a coalition of parties in Congress, labelled by critics as the villain preventing the government from making progress.