Lula: Brazil's ex-president cleared by a Supreme Court judge

[muriel_volestrangler]

Brazil's ex-President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has been cleared of corruption by a Supreme Court judge, opening a path to a possible run for the presidency in 2022.
...
But Supreme Court Justice Edson Fachin annulled Lula's convictions.

He said in a statement that a court in the southern city of Curitiba did not have the right to try the four cases, which should instead be heard by a federal court in the capital, Brasilia.

The ruling, which still has to be considered by the full Supreme Court, restores Lula's political rights, unless he is convicted again.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-56326389

Can anyone say if it's likely the full court will now agree with this judge?

[Judi Lynn]

1. I wish I knew something about who sits on the court. Bolsonaro took Judge Moro, who imprisoned Lula,

and placed him directly within his administration after he maneuvered him into prison.

Article from several years ago:

Brazil’s Lula convicted to keep him from 2018 election: Report
Brazil’s top prosecutors reportedly plotted to convict Lula and prevent his party from winning 2018 elections.

10 Jun 2019

Brazil‘s justice minister and prosecutors collaborated to convict left-wing icon Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on corruption charges to prevent him from contesting the 2018 election, an investigative news outlet has reported.

The Intercept said on Sunday an anonymous source provided material, including private chats, audio recordings, videos and photos, that show “serious wrongdoing, unethical behaviour, and systematic deceit”.

“Secret documents reveal that Brazil’s most powerful prosecutors … plotted to prevent the Workers’ Party [PT] from winning the 2018 presidential election by blocking or weakening a pre-election interview with former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva,” said the news report.

Among the explosive claims, The Intercept said prosecutors in a massive, years-long anti-corruption probe known as “Car Wash” had expressed “serious doubts whether there was sufficient evidence to establish Lula’s guilt”.

Justice Minister Sergio Moro was the anti-corruption judge who handed Lula his first conviction in 2017, which prevented him from running in a presidential election he was widely expected to win.

President Jair Bolsonaro, who said during his campaign that he hoped Lula would “rot in prison”, later made Moro part of his cabinet.

More:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/6/10/brazils-lula-convicted-to-keep-him-from-2018-election-report




Bolsonaro with Judge Moro



Looks as if Bolsonaro is unfamiliar with what happens if he pulls Moro's finger.

[Judi Lynn]

2. Hope this report is sound: Brazil judge clears ex-leader Lula to run again in 2022

By Valeria PACHECO (AFP) 1 hour ago

Brazil judge clears ex-leader Lula to run again in 2022
BY VALERIA PACHECO (AFP) 1 HOUR AGO

A Brazilian Supreme Court judge on Monday overturned the graft convictions against former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, clearing the way for the left-wing leader to run in the 2022 presidential election.

Justice Edson Fachin overturned all convictions against the popular-but-tarnished ex-president (2003-2010), stemming from a probe into a massive corruption scheme centered on Brazilian state oil company Petrobras.

Fachin ruled the court in the southeastern city of Curitiba that convicted Lula "lacked jurisdiction," and sent a total of four related cases against him to a federal court in the capital, Brasilia.

Lula, 75, regains the right to run for office unless the convictions are reinstated.

The decision, which was procedural, did not go into the merits of the cases.

The prosecutor general's office said it would appeal.

The full Supreme Court could overturn Fachin's ruling, though legal experts said that was unlikely.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/brazil-judge-overturns-ex-leader-lula-s-convictions/article/586666#ixzz6oZ7UOv5P

[nitpicker]

3. Link to The Guardian article

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/mar/08/lula-convictions-annulled-by-brazil-judge-bolsonaro-election-2022

[Judi Lynn]

4. Lula, Bolsonaro trade barbs in possible preview of Brazil election

Former president scolds incumbent's handling of the pandemic
Thomson Reuters · Posted: Mar 10, 2021 10:10 PM ET | Last Updated: 4 hours ago

Brazilians got a preview Wednesday of how two powerful political rivals may battle to lead their country next year.
Former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Jair Bolsonaro, the country's current president, both fired an early starting gun on the 2022 election set to be dominated by the raging pandemic, a weak economy and deep political polarization.

In his first public comments since his graft convictions were annulled by a Supreme Court justice on Monday, Lula said he had not decided whether to run in next year's election.

But his long, impassioned speech, delivered under a banner proclaiming "Health, jobs and justice for Brazil" in the union where his political career took off in the 1980s, had the feel of a campaign launch.

"This country is disorganized and falling apart because it has no government," he told the audience at the metalworkers union in Sao Bernardo do Campo, comparing the current economic crisis to strong growth and falling inequality when he previously led Brazil for two presidential terms.

More:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/lula-bolsonaro-pandemic-election-1.5945021

[Judi Lynn]

5. Lula excoriates Bolsonaro's 'moronic' Covid response in comeback speech

Addressing the nation, Brazil’s former president left no doubt that his political fightback had begun

Tom Phillips in Rio de Janeiro
Wed 10 Mar 2021 14.15 EST

Brazil’s former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has excoriated Jair Bolsonaro’s “moronic” and bungling response to the coronavirus pandemic, in a stirring and potentially historic address widely seen as the start of a bid to wrestle the presidency back from his far-right nemesis.

The veteran leftist, who led Latin America’s top economy through some of the brightest years in its modern history, was catapulted back on to the frontline of Brazilian politics on Monday by the surprise decision to quash the corruption convictions that scuppered his bid to reclaim the presidency in 2018. On Tuesday a supreme court judge branded the anti-corruption operation that forced Lula from that year’s election “the greatest judicial scandal” in Brazilian history.

Addressing the nation on Wednesday, the 75-year-old stopped short of formally announcing he would challenge Bolsonaro – a rightwing populist who critics accuse of catastrophically mishandling the Covid outbreak – in the 2022 election. But Lula, who was president from 2003 to 2011, left no doubt his political fightback had begun.

“Just think about the madness that is taking hold of this country,” said the Workers’ party (PT) leader, who was barred from running in the 2018 election after being jailed.

More:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/mar/10/brazil-lula-comeback-speech-bolsonaro-covid-response