The preventive detention of former President Jair Bolsonaro, issued on Saturday, has reignited efforts so that the project to reduce the sentences of those convicted of the January 8 acts can move forward in the chamber. Opposition members are putting pressure on the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hugo Motta (Republicanos-PB), to adopt the text, but part of the Centrao is calling for caution to prevent the initiative from being seen as an insult to the Federal Supreme Court (STF).
Names from the People’s Party, the Brazilian Union, the Republicans, the Social Democratic Party and the Brazilian Development Bank suggest that even with the arrest reviving Bolsonaro’s party mobilization, there is no environment for moving forward in the short term. In the People’s Party, leaders stated that the issue does not currently meet the “minimum political conditions” for a vote. In the Brazilian Confederation, lawmakers see the danger of interpreting the debate as a showdown with the Supreme Court with no prospect of victory. PSD members believe there are not enough votes to resume the agenda. At the IDB, leaders defend that the party is not now embarking on an agenda considered too polarizing.
Despite the centre’s resistance, Bolsonaro’s allies have begun to acknowledge, with reservations, the possibility of a vote on the dosimetry text, arguing that it will be necessary to move forward with processing the measure to prevent the matter from being postponed. This change represents an important turning point for the party, which, until last week, was calling for a comprehensive amnesty as the only option. Now, some lawmakers acknowledge that calibrating the sentences is the only way to prevent the case from being postponed altogether — and, politically, to try to mitigate the impact of the arrest of Bolsonaro, who has been detained since Saturday.
However, a more extreme wing continues to advocate general amnesty. In this scenario, the plan would be to submit an amendment after presenting the opinion of Rapporteur Paulinho da Forsa (Solidariedade-SP). Representatives say they have been calling and sending letters since Saturday, demanding that the proposal be included on the agenda. Among them is MP Tenente Zoko (PL-RS), leader of the opposition, who confirms that he sought the Speaker of the House of Representatives:
– I sent a letter to Hugo Motta asking him to discuss the pardon, he said.
The matter is expected to be discussed on Tuesday at a leaders’ meeting, the first real test to gauge whether pressure will make a difference. Before that, the Hizb ut-Tahrir seat will meet on Monday with the party’s president, Waldemar Costa Neto, at the party’s headquarters, to develop a unified strategy before Tuesday’s meeting.
The project rapporteur, Paulinho da Forsa, has been contacted since Saturday by opposition parliamentarians interested in discussing the progress of his project. It is reported that the arrest led to an internal reorganization:
Bolsonaro’s arrest makes negotiations easier. He said that Hizb ut-Tahrir previously only wanted to discuss amnesty.
In the room, Motta continues without speaking publicly about the issue. The interlocutors claim that the project will not be placed on the agenda except by consensus in the Leadership College. In recent weeks, the topic has been forgotten in meetings.
The publication issued on Saturday by former chamber president Arthur Lira (PP-AL) in defense of Bolsonaro encouraged part of the opposition, but did not change the dosimetric assessment. Allies of the former president of the chamber claim that his demonstration was symbolic in nature and did not represent a desire to lead a dialogue about the project.
For the leader of the Labor Party in Parliament, Lindbergh Farias, if he insists on voting on a draft that provides for a pardon for the former president, the opposition will “shoot itself in the foot.”
– If they pursue the amnesty agenda, they will give us a gift, because it is all about isolating themselves in society. Bolsonaro’s arrest with an ankle bracelet has greatly isolated him politically. As for Parliament, those who defended it in the first moments have become more silent now. From the government’s point of view, we do not agree with any such agenda, if they impose it, they are shooting themselves in the foot – said the Labor member. (Contributed by Jennifer Goulart)