Catholic leaders condemn attacks on Brazil’s Congress, high court, presidential palace January 9, 2023By Lisa Alves OSV News Filed Under: Feature, News, World News SÃO PAULO (OSV News) — The National Conference of Brazilian Bishops said in a statement it was “perplexed by the serious and violent occurrences” that erupted Jan. 8 in Brasilia, the nation’s capital. Thousands of protesters invaded the country’s Congress, Supreme Court building and the presidential palace, enraged about newly sworn-in president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva gestures at an election night gathering as he was proclaimed the winner in the Brazilian presidential election runoff, in São Paulo Oct. 30, 2022. (CNS photo/Amanda Perobelli, Reuters) The protesters are supporters of former president Jair Bolsonaro, who was defeated by Lula, as the new president is popularly known. They demand the removal of the new president, stating that the October elections were illegitimate and are asking Brazil’s military to take over. Bishops’ conference officials called for the immediate cessation of “criminal attacks on the democratic rule of law.” “These attacks must be immediately contained and their organizers and participants held accountable to the fullest extent of the law. Citizens and democracy must be protected,” said the message in the conference’s social media accounts. Cardinal Odilo Pedro Scherer of São Paulo also condemned the events stating that what happened in Brasília “was unacceptable.”The Brazilian bishops’ Indigenous Missionary Council, or CIMI, also spoke out against the invaders, condemning the criminal invasion and attacks on federal public buildings. “Such acts confirm the legacy of destruction, fascism and authoritarianism that the government of former President of the Republic (Jair Bolsonaro) bequeathed to the country,” CIMI said in a news release.According to the council, in addition to a “devastated state, he promoted the division of families and communities and the manipulation of consciences, as well as the radicalization of an extreme right that defends dictatorship, violence and racism.” “We hope that all political, civil and criminal responsibilities are investigated and that the main perpetrators of these violent acts are severely punished,” CIMI said. Video footage from the country’s leading TV stations Jan. 8 showed large crowds walking up the ramp to the congressional building, breaking windows and furniture inside the lawmakers’ chamber.Other videos showed invaders ransacking Supreme Court justices’ offices and damaging artworks. Lisa Alves writes for OSV News from São Paulo. Read More World News 13 things to know about Pope Leo’s encyclical on AI Pope Leo XIV tells Vatican press conference AI must be ‘disarmed’ for humanity’s sake ‘Magnifica Humanitas’ a call for moral wisdom in the age of AI, panelists say 10 quotes from Pope Leo’s first encyclical you should know for the era of AI ‘Magnifica Humanitas’: Pope Leo’s AI encyclical warns of temptation to build future excluding God Pope Leo’s encyclical on AI a ‘powerful reminder’ of human dignity, says Archbishop Coakley Copyright © 2023 OSV News Print
