“It is our duty to record the decisive role of the Federal Supreme Court and the Superior Electoral Court in defending Brazilian society against arbitrariness. From here in this room, against which the most concentrated hatred of the aggressors was turned, courageous and absolutely necessary decisions were taken to face and stop the setback, denialism and political violence”, he said, alongside the president of the STF, Rosa Weber.
In the speech, the president stated that the coup acts of January 8th they showed the most absurd face of violence and hatred and were not born “by spontaneous generation, but cultivated in successive attacks against the law and the Constitution, with the objective of sustaining an authoritarian project of power”. And he went on to say that he will “carry that outrage” with him for the rest of his life.
“And I know that it made me redouble my willingness to defend democracy, which the Brazilian people had won with great difficulty”.
According to the president, the attacks, however, were not able to shake the ministers of the Supreme Court in their mission to defend the Constitution.
“More than a rebuilt plenary, what I see here is the fearlessness of ministers in defense of our Magna Carta. I see the unwavering willingness to work day and night to ensure that there is not a millimeter of retreat in our democracy,” she added.
Lula assured that, as in the two previous terms, his government will work in harmony and institutional respect with the Judiciary.
“The Brazilian people do not want conflicts between institutions. He does not want aggression, intimidation or the silence of the powers that be. The Brazilian people want and need a lot of work, dedication and efforts from the Three Powers to rebuild Brazil”, said the president. He emphasized that the “real enemies are others: hunger, inequality, lack of opportunities, extremism and political violence, environmental destruction and the climate crisis”.
Before Lula, the president of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), stated that, in recent weeks, Brazilian democracy has demonstrated its importance and that it will remain. Pacheco also defended strict punishment of those responsible for anti-democratic acts. “We have a constitutional obligation to live in harmony. Any gesture aimed at disharmony between the Powers of the Republic is an affront to the Constitution”.
