On Tuesday (29/04), a federation between the Progressist Party (PP) and União Brasil was officially launched. The two parties have four ministries working for the Lula (PT) government. Yet, they inaugurated the federation with an opposition speech, declaring that the country needed a “prosperity shock” and the solution of unresolved conflicts. Meanwhile, in Brasília, talks for the Amnesty seem to have advanced with a new proposal to punish more severely organizers and financers of the 8 January attacks and to reduce sentences for the rest.
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The Federation
Even though the government was not directly mentioned, the event was filled with implicit and explicit criticisms against it. The criticisms in the manifesto and speeches occurred despite the participation of both parties in the current government. The federation, which still needs to be approved by the party bodies, will be the strongest group in Congress. It will have the largest bench in the Chamber, with 109 federal deputies, and in the Senate, with 14 senators (tied with PSD and PL).
The governor of Goiás, Ronaldo Caiado was an important figure in the launching of the federation. He received the promise of support for his pre-candidacy for the Presidency of the Republic. Caiado stated that the size of the federation will allow the group to have weight and be heard.
Talks for Amnesty
The presidents of the Senate, Davi Alcolumbre, and the Chamber of Deputies, Hugo Motta, are finalizing negotiations with the Supreme Federal Court (STF) to approve a law in parliament that will reduce the sentences of those convicted in the January 8 attacks. On the other hand, it will increase the punishments for leaders of attempted coups d’état in Brazil.
With this, the protesters who were arrested for attempting to violently abolish the democratic rule of law after the January 8 riots could be released, or at least ordered to serve their sentences in a semi-open regime or under house arrest. The bill should be presented in the Senate in May by Alcolumbre.
The Government Supports
The leader of the government in the Senate, Jaques Wagner (PT-BA), said he thinks it would be “great” for a bill to reduce the sentences of those convicted in the 8 January attacks, as long as there is no amnesty or benefit for those who ordered and financed the attacks.
Resistance
For opposing reasons, members of the opposition and a wing of the Lula government (PT) raised objections to the construction of an agreement to reassess the sentences applicable to those who participated in the anti-democratic acts of January 8, but without a pardon for the crimes committed.
While opposition senators and federal deputies publicly condemned the suggestion and promised not to give up on broad amnesty, aides to President Lula went so far as to state that this agreement would be unconstitutional, as it violated the autonomy of the branches of government.
Analysis:
The emergence of the federation is a new development of a current trend in Brazilian politics to reduce the number of parties and concentrate representativeness in a few groups, which could facilitate the political negotiations and increase governability. Yet, in fact, some federations and party unifications have been difficult to render, due to fundamental differences even among parties from the same political spectrum.
Despite such difficulties, the advancement of such a federation which aggregates parties in the government but that now take an opposition stance, is another evidence of the current troubles the central power is continuously facing with its own allies. If this movement remains until the next elections, it is likely that Lula will reach 2026 in a tough situation to face his political adversaries. The economic results and the government’s ability to show and promote the work it has been carrying out will be fundamental.
