Huge crowds rally for Brazil’s Bolsonaro ahead of verdict in coup trial

Brazilians have marked the country’s Independence Day with duelling rallies in support of and against former President Jair Bolsonaro, days before the conclusion of his trial on charges of plotting a coup following his election defeat in 2022.

Tens of thousands of Bolsonaro’s supporters gathered in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and the capital, Brasilia, on Sunday, waving the flags of Brazil and the United States, in an apparent nod to President Donald Trump, an ally of the far-right former leader.

Thousands more also rallied for Bolsonaro’s conviction in cities including Brasilia and Sao Paulo.

The 70-year-old former army captain, who has been under house arrest, risks up to 43 years in prison if he is convicted of orchestrating a coup to stay in power despite his election loss.

Bolsonaro has denied the charges in the case, which has also sparked Trump’s anger.

The US president has called the legal proceedings against Bolsonaro a “witch-hunt” and imposed high tariffs on Brazilian products as well as sanctions on the justices presiding over his trial.

The rally for Bolsonaro in Sao Paulo drew 40,000 supporters, according to a research group at the University of Sao Paulo, including the former leader’s wife, Michelle Bolsonaro.

“He loves his nation and his people, but he is suffering. I tell him every day that he will win. I believe and I trust in God’s answer to our nation,” Michelle Bolsonaro said in a tearful speech in the city.

Brazil’s Supreme Court is expected to issue its ruling by Friday.

Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, the former president’s eldest son, told supporters who gathered at Copacabana Beach, in Rio de Janeiro, that his father will face the situation head-on “to demonstrate yet again that he will not give up on Brazil”.

The senator wore a shirt that read “Bolsonaro 2026”, though his father is barred from running. He also denounced Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, the rapporteur of the case, as a dictator.

Bolsonaro’s supporters, meanwhile, insisted the former leader is innocent.

“If he had wanted to stay in power, he would have been successful. Brazilians need to wake up,” said former military officer Suieton Souza, who had a sarong mingling the US and Brazilian flags wrapped around his shoulders, on Copacabana Beach.

Fewer Bolsonaro supporters were seen at the traditional Independence Day military parade in Brasilia, which was attended by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva

Lula led the traditional parade, which this year had the motto “Sovereign Brazil”, following punitive 50 percent US tariffs imposed by Trump.

On Saturday night, Lula delivered a national message in advance of Independence Day celebrations and said Brazil “will not be anyone’s colony”, in yet another reference to Trump.

“Years ago, we gained our sovereignty,” Lula said.

“We are not and will never again become a colony of anyone. We can take care of our own land and people without the interference of any foreign government,” he added.

Some people at the military parade in Brasilia condemned those who support Trump’s tariffs as traitors.

“The Trump government has attempted to invade Brazil, politically – by influencing our adversaries – and economically, with tariffs and sanctions,” said Helio Barreto, a professor.

“We say ‘get your big feet out’ so that he’ll respect Brazil!”

Al Jazeera’s Lucia Newman, reporting from Brasilia, said Trump – in a move that has further aggravated tensions – has accused Brazil and members of the BRICS group that include China and Russia of trying to undermine the US dollar.

“Trump is threatening to place more tariffs on BRICS nations, but in keeping with his vow not to take orders from Washington, President Lula has called for an emergency meeting of BRICS leaders via teleconference on Monday to discuss a response to the tariffs,” said Newman.

“It’s a move that, along with Bolsonaro’s trial, has Brazilians bracing for yet new US sanctions as they commemorate their independence.”

Earlier on Sunday, trade unions and left-wing social movements rallied thousands of people in Sao Paulo to protest against a proposal to offer amnesty to Bolsonaro, and hundreds of his supporters who were convicted over the January 8, 2023 storming of the Supreme Court, the presidential palace and the Congress in Brasilia.

The riots mimicked the attack on the US Capitol two years earlier.

The amnesty project is being led by leaders of centrist and opposition parties.

“History has already shown that amnesty and forgiveness are the best remedies to pacify the country,” said Sao Paulo Governor Tarcisio de Freitas, one of the supporters of the proposal, in a recent post on social media.

The governor’s efforts to advance the amnesty project are widely viewed as a strategic move to secure the former leader’s endorsement for a potential run as a right-wing candidate in the 2026 presidential election, a prospect Freitas has so far denied.

Lula has spoken against the governor’s efforts, warning that any amnesty of those who participated in the January 8 mayhem would carry significant risks.

“It’s a battle that must also be fought by the people,” the president said.

Bolsonaro, who served as president from 2019 to 2022, is barred from running for office until 2030 for casting doubt on Brazil’s voting system without evidence.

The former president, who says he is the victim of political persecution, was in the US on January 8, 2023, but is accused of inciting the rioters, who called for the military to depose Lula a week after his return to power.

Although barred from running for office, Bolsonaro has consistently expressed his desire to run in the 2026 presidential election.