Brazilian Court Bans Bolsonaro from Taking Action Against Isolation

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – On Friday afternoon, March 27th, a Federal district court in Duque de Caxias, a large suburb of Rio de Janeiro, prohibited the federal government from taking measures against social isolation as a means of preventing the Covid-19, a disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

It further overturned the validity of two decrees issued by President Jair Bolsonaro that classified churches and lottery houses as essential services, which allowed them to operate despite bans on crowds in states and municipalities. The measure has immediate effect and applies to the whole of Brazil. The AGU (Attorney General of the Union) stated it will appeal.

The preliminary injunction grants a petition filed by the MPF (Federal Prosecutor’s Office). In the decision, federal judge Márcio Santoro Rocha, of the 1st Federal Court of Duque de Caxias, orders the federal government and the Duque de Caxias City Hall “to refrain from adopting any encouragement to disregard the social isolation recommended by WHO [World Health Organization],” under penalty of a fine of R$100,000 (US$20,000) in case of non-compliance.

The ruling is based on the argument, elicited by the MPF, that the inclusion of new sectors in the list of essential activities and services is illegal since this list was originally established by a 1989 federal law.

“The decree is a secondary normative act, of a non-statutory nature, which must, therefore, fully comply with the law which is superior to it, and only the latter imposes obligations and duties of a general nature. (…) Decree 10.292/2020, by including ‘religious activities of any nature in compliance with the prescriptions of the Ministry of Health’ and ‘ lottery houses’ as essential activities, did so contrary to the provisions of Law 7.783/1989,” states the federal judge.

On Tuesday, March 24th, Bolsonaro made a statement on national radio and TV to criticize the lockdown and isolation measures implemented by governors and mayors, advocating that the population return to their ordinary activities, except for the elderly and other members of at-risk groups. Friday, March 27th, the SECOM (Secretariat of Communication of the Presidency of the Republic) launched an advertising campaign against isolation, with the slogan “Brazil can’t stop”.

The president has also repeatedly said in interviews and public statements that governors and mayors – who have determined measures to restrict the movement of people, crowds and the shutdown of commercial establishments – are generating “hysteria” and want to crush the country.

On Wednesday, March 25th, Bolsonaro issued a decree that classified religious temples and lottery houses as essential services, which freed the operation of such venues despite bans on crowds decreed by governors and mayors.

Bolsonaro’s decree heeded pressure from the evangelical bench members in Congress, who feared the ban on services. Decrees around Brazil and judicial decisions were preventing churches from carrying out activities with public gatherings.

One of these injunctions banned services in the Assembly of God in Christ Church, of Pastor Silas Malafaia, the president’s first-ever ally.

In an interview with the TV show host Ratinho on Friday, March 21st, Bolsonaro criticized the ban on church services. “What I see in Brazil, not everyone, but many people, to satisfy their electorate, they are taking absurd steps… Closing malls, there are people who want to close churches, the last refuge for people,” said Bolsonaro.

The Municipality of Duque de Caxias says it has not yet been notified of the decision. “As soon as it is received, the City Prosecutor will speak, according to the decision of Mayor Washington Reis,” it says in a note.

The Federal Solicitor General stated that “it will appeal the decision that suspends excerpts from the President’s decree rendering churches and lottery houses an essential activity for society during the public calamity caused by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus”.

Source: UOL