Brazil: Lula agrees to surrender to police April 7 /update 7

Event

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Lula), the former president and current presidential candidate, said on Saturday, April 7, that he will turn himself into the authorities to serve a 12-year prison term for corruption. Lula made his announcement during a rally outside of the headquarters of Brazil's Metalworkers union in São Bernardo do Campo (São Paulo state). However, during the talk Lula continued to claim that he is innocent and the charges are political motivated. Lula’s decision to comply with the arrest warrant may provoke further street protests by both pro-Lula and anti-Lula groups.

Context

The highly-anticipated Supreme Court ruling ordering Lula's incarceration was made in the early morning hours of April 5. Lula had been convicted to 12 years in prison in rulings made in July 2017 and January 2018 but had remained free as he exhausted the appeals process. He had initially refused to report to the federal police headquarters in Curitiba by the court-ordered deadline on April 6. Instead, Lula traveled to São Bernardo do Campo, where a large crowd gathered in support.

Lula was president from 2003 to 2011 and, as the country's first working-class ruler, was and remains a popular figure among much of the population. Despite his conviction, which would technically prohibit him from running in the upcoming October 7 presidential elections, he has been nominated by the Workers' Party (PT) as their presidential candidate. Lula and the PT have characterized his conviction as a political witch-hunt intended to keep him out of office.

Advice

Individuals in Brazil are advised to keep abreast of developments, and the sociopolitical climate more generally, and avoid all protests due to the potential for violence.