RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – On Friday night, July 12th, dozens of people with green and yellow flags, fireworks and loud sound equipment attempted to prevent journalist Glenn Greenwald from speaking to the public who crowded the Paraty Wharf at a parallel event to the International Literary Festival of Paraty (FLIP).
Greenwald is the editor of The Intercept website, responsible for the disclosure of conversations about the allegedly illegal actions of former judge and current justice minister Sérgio Moro and chief prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol.
The American journalist took part in a debate organized by independent publishers about investigative journalism, together with comedian and presenter Gregório Duvivier and journalist Sérgio Amadeu.
During the intervention, Greenwald reaffirmed the veracity of the conversations that are being published by The Intercept and some Brazilian media, such as the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo, Veja magazine and TV Bandeirantes, which have questioned the neutrality of Operation Lava Jato.
“Moro’s mask is forever down […] We are much closer to the beginning than to the end. We have a lot more to disclose,” he said, referring to alleged illegal conversations reportedly held by former judge Sérgio Moro with Lava Jato’s prosecutors.
While the American journalist was talking on a boat in the port of Paraty, people who objected to his presence in the city used loudspeakers to increase the sound of fireworks and the National Anthem.
Throughout his speech, Glenn struggled to be heard by the public at the pier.
Scheduled for 7 PM, Greenwald’s lecture was unable to start before 7:30 PM due to the noise from demonstrators, who stopped after a police intervention only to return later with loud noise and fireworks.
The sound reached the FLIP’s main pavilion, where the last debate table of the day brought together indigenous writer Ailton Krenak and playwright José Celso Martinez Corrêa, from the Teatro Oficina.
Krenak mentioned the protest against the participation of journalist Glenn Greenwald and said that in Brazil, many people are “experiencing resistance” to people who are calling for “brute force.”
According to Globo, at 8:45 PM, when questions from the audience were allowed, a Paraty resident said emotionally: “They don’t represent the city.”
The lecture ended at around 9:20 PM.