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Tens of thousands of people gathered across Brazil’s main cities on Sunday to protest against a bill that – if passed – would reduce the time former President Jair Bolsonaro will spend in jail.<\/p>\n
The former president is serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup d’etat after he lost the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Luiz In\u00e1cio Lula da Silva.<\/p>\n
One of the lawmakers backing the bill told AFP news agency it could lead to Bolsonaro’s sentence being shortened to two years and four months in prison.<\/p>\n
Last week, chaos erupted as conservative lawmakers pushed it through the lower house of Congress. It is expected to go before the Senate later this week.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Protesters took to the streets of Rio de Janeiro, Bras\u00edlia, Salvador and other cities to show their rejection of the bill. <\/p>\n
Close to 19,000 people, among them the Oscar-winning actor Fernanda Torres and 83-year-old singer Caetano Veloso, rallied at Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach to denounce the proposed changes. In S\u00e3o Paulo, around 13,700 took to the streets.<\/p>\n
It is not the first time anti-Bolsonaro protests have been held in Brazil. Three months ago, tens of thousands of people rallied to denounce calls to officially pardon Bolsonaro. <\/p>\n
In September, Brazil’s Supreme Court found the former president, who governed from January 2019 to December 2022, guilty of proposing a coup to military leaders. <\/p>\n
The judges also found that he knew of a plot to assassinate Lula.<\/p>\n
While a military coup did not materialise, his supporters launched a violent assault on government buildings in Bras\u00edlia in January 2023, after which thousands were detained.<\/p>\n
Were the bill to pass, the sentences of those jailed for their involvement in the January 2023 attacks could also be cut.<\/p>\n
Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies – where conservatives are in the majority – overwhelmingly voted in favour of the proposal.<\/p>\n
However, before it can become law, it still needs to be approved by the Senate and President Lula.<\/p>\n
While President Lula is likely to veto the bill, such a veto could be overturned by Congress.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n