Brazil’s new president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva vowed to root out the “financiers” and “vandals” who stormed the main government complex in Brasília yesterday in scenes reminiscent of the US Capitol riot two years ago by supporters of ex-president Donald Trump.
“There is no precedent in the history of our country for what these people did. They have to be punished. And we are going to find out who are the financiers of these vandals,” Lula said, as he returned to the capital after a night of violence.
“They will all pay with the force of law for this irresponsible act, this anti-democratic act, this act of vandals and fascists.”
Thousands of supporters of Brazil’s former rightwing president Jair Bolsonaro yesterday stormed the Congress, supreme court and presidential palace in Brasília before the police and security services regained control.
Clad in the yellow and green of the Brazilian flag, the protesters called for a military coup d’état, demanding that the election victory of Lula be overturned and the leftwing leader imprisoned. Police said 300 people were arrested.
Although the government buildings were unoccupied and Congress was not in session, the breaches are likely to raise doubts about the security of Brazil’s political and judicial institutions.
The incident also presents tough choices for Lula, who took over the presidency just a week ago promising to unite the nation but who will now be under pressure to crack down on Bolsonaro’s radical supporters.
For months Bolsonaro has cast doubt on the integrity of Brazil’s electronic voting system. His political party launched a legal challenge to annul October’s election result, but it was rejected by a court.
The former president, who is currently in Florida, yesterday said on Twitter that peaceful demonstrations were part of democracy, but that the actions on Sunday crossed the line.
Go deeper: Who are the rioters who stormed Brazil’s government offices?
Five more stories in the news
1. Exclusive: US military deepens ties with Japan and Philippines to prepare for China threat US and Japanese armed forces are rapidly integrating their command structure and scaling up combined operations to prepare for a possible conflict with China over Taiwan, according to the top Marine Corps general in Japan. The two militaries have “seen exponential increases . . . just over the last year” in their operations on the territory they would have to defend in case of a war, Lieutenant General James Bierman told the Financial Times. Read more on the interview here.
2. Goldman Sachs prepares to cut thousands of jobs The Wall Street bank is preparing to cut 3,200 jobs, a person familiar with the matter told the Financial Times. The cuts, which represent about 6.5 per cent of Goldman’s workforce, are to rein in costs as it faces a slowdown in investment banking and a pairing back of its consumer bank.
3. New Avatar movie becomes seventh-highest grossing of all time Avatar: The Way of Water has now sold tickets worth more than $1.7bn at the global box office following weekend sales, putting it ahead of Jurassic World in the list of highest grossing movies of all time. James Cameron’s original Avatar, released in 2009 and added to the Disney franchise in 2019, remains the top moneymaker in cinema history with $2.9bn in gross sales.
4. Russia at risk of becoming failed state, say foreign policy experts Nearly half of top foreign policy experts think Russia will become a failed state or break up by 2033, while a large majority expects China to try to take Taiwan by force, according to a new survey by the Atlantic Council that points to a decade of global tumult ahead.
5. Thousands cross Hong Kong-China border as Covid restrictions end Tens of thousands of travellers crossed in both directions between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong yesterday as Covid restrictions were eased for the first time in three years. Meanwhile, many of the world’s leading tourist destinations are preparing to welcome back Chinese tourists as they are allowed to travel again.
The day ahead
US-Mexico: Joe Biden is in Mexico City for bilateral talks with his Mexican counterpart, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, ahead of a trilateral leaders’ summit between the two and Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau tomorrow. Yesterday the president visited El Paso, Texas to take a first-hand look at the migrant surge on the southern US border.
McCarthy takes up the gavel After a historic 15th round of voting in the early hours of Saturday morning Kevin McCarthy was finally nominated to the role of Speaker in the House of Representatives — now the hard work begins.
Supreme Court: The US Supreme Court will consider the scope of attorney-client privilege when it hears oral arguments in a case known as In re Grand Jury. Currently, a lawyer cannot be compelled to divulge legal advice given to a client, however they can be ordered to disclose non-legal advice. Today’s case will focus on the area in between: when advice is partially legal and partially not legal. Read more on the case.
Company results Jefferies Financial will report its latest quarterly and full-year financial results, with analysts expecting the company to post earnings of 62 cents a share on revenue of $1.25bn in its fourth quarter of 2022, and $3.12 a share on revenue of $5.8bn for the year.
Markets outlook Contracts tracking US equity markets rose slightly this morning ahead of the Wall Street open. The gains follow a strong end to the first week of the year on Friday, after government data showed the economy added more jobs than economists had expected in December but slowing wage growth.
FT Live will host a number of events alongside the World Economic Forum in Davos next week. View the events and register for free here.
What else we’re reading
The Murdoch family trust: how the scions could battle for control The dilemmas of succession, shared control and tangled family loyalties that have dogged Rupert Murdoch’s career are now set to fall heavily on the next generation of the media dynasty. With the $27bn plan in motion to reunite Fox and News Corp one question looms: when the time comes, will the rest of the family let Murdoch’s eldest son and chosen heir Lachlan run the show? Global media editor Alex Barker investigates.
North Korea’s evolving nuclear threat In spite of tough international sanctions and extreme self-imposed isolation during the coronavirus pandemic, experts warn that North Korea has made such rapid progress with its military goals that existing arrangements for the defence of South Korea, Japan and the US could soon be rendered obsolete.
From obscurity to a $240bn valuation in three years The astonishing growth of International Holding Company, a conglomerate based in the United Arab Emirates, has taken even its chief executive by surprise. The former fish farm and real estate business employed 40 people three years ago and now has a headcount of 150,000 and a market value of $240bn.
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Hyper-efficiency is bad business Did you have a happy holiday season? Probably not if you travelled with the budget carrier Southwest Airlines. While severe weather and out-of-date crew scheduling software were cited as reasons for the meltdown, the problem is reflective of a much larger issue for Southwest in particular, the airline industry in general, and even the American business landscape as a whole, argues Rana Foroohar.
There are only five reasons to go to Davos Critical communications expert and founding partner at Monkwell Strategy, Rutherford Hall, briefs a client ahead of this year’s World Economic Forum. “The one problem with networking at Davos is everyone wants to network up, not down,” he writes.
Take a break from the news
Have your chakras aligned in a sound- and light-therapy chamber, close yourself away in a private Longevity Garden or lounge on an infrared bed shaded by banana trees. Four healing hotels for 2023 to help you get your groove back.
Source: Economy - ft.com
