By Mohamad Hojeije | Staff Writer
On February 28th, the Brazilian minister Alexandre de Moraes of the Supremo Tribunal Federal (STF) (the Supreme Federal Court), authorized the release of 137 arrested prisoners due to their involvement in the January 8th invasion. More than 900 people have been arrested since right–wing protestors stormed the Brazilian Congress, Presidential facilities, and the Supreme Court. Thousands of Bolsonaro supporters forcibly invaded these facilities to show their dissatisfaction with the leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s recent victory, who had assumed office a week earlier. The released prisoners will be able to return home but will have to follow certain procedures in accordance with the law; they must wear an electronic ankle tag, their gun permits and passports are suspended since they are not allowed to leave the country, and they will not be able to communicate with other suspects involved in the invasion, nor use social media.
Fifty days after the most serious attack on Brazilian democracy in decades, investigations continue and arrests of those accused of inciting and financing the attack are still taking place. Nothing has been revealed about the interrogations of the former Minister of Justice of Jair Bolsonaro’s government, who has been jailed for his involvement in the assault on the capitol. The decision by judge Alexandre de Moraes to order provisional release came after Bolsonaro and the recently appointed head of the evangelical lobby in Congress, Eli Borges, complained on Monday that hundreds of suspects detained on January 8th are still in custody.
The former president, who left for Florida before the end of his term and is currently residing in the U.S. on a tourist visa, complained that almost two months after the attack there were “900 people in jail, treated like terrorists.” The far-right former president is currently under investigation for sedition and incitement of violent conduct, as evidence of a document planning a coup in the residence of his former Minister of Justice, Anderson Torres has been made known to the public.
The authorization of the release of 137 prisoners who participated in the January 8th invasion of the Brazilian capital represents an important milestone in the ongoing investigation of what has been dubbed “the attack on Brazilian democracy“. Nonetheless, as investigations are ongoing and the former president is being investigated for incitement of violent conduct and sedition, the political stability in Brazil remains uncertain. The outcome of this case is crucial for demonstrating the strength and integrity of Brazil’s democratic institutions, and will undoubtedly have a significant impact on the Brazilian country and its nation’s future.