Although the government had to formally classify Brazilian criminal factions as terrorists and used the measure to attack the opponent (-RJ), the president (PT) has already resorted to the rhetoric of defending that the actions of the CV () be treated as acts of and combatted as such.
The defense was made in a speech in the Planalto Palace parlor, on the day of his second term inauguration, on January 1, 2007.
“This barbarity that happened cannot be treated as a common crime. This is terrorism and has to be fought with a strong policy and a strong hand from the Brazilian State,” he said. “What happened in Rio de Janeiro was one of the most violent terrorist practices I have seen in this country and, as such, it must be combated.”
Lula’s speech in 2007 came in response to an episode that occurred in the last days of 2006, (9 civilians, 2 police officers and 7 suspects, according to the balance of the Rio Public Security Secretariat at the time).
At the time, posters left by the criminals attributed the offensive to a reaction by the CV to the “Comando Azul”, a group of militias with the participation of police officers that disputed territories with the faction’s drug dealers. The official version of the Security Secretariat, however, indicated that the orders came from imprisoned leaders.
Equating criminal factions with terrorist organizations is a hallmark of Flávio’s pre-campaign and was a request that the senator claims to have made directly to , in May, during a visit to the White House.
The PL pre-candidate claims that the factions operate a parallel power and that the country cannot give up North American help to confront them. Public security experts, however, assess that the new classification .
In a statement from the State Department, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that CV and (First Command of the Capital) “command thousands of members and orchestrated brutal attacks against Brazilian police officers, public servants and civilians” and that “their influence and illicit networks extend far beyond Brazil’s borders.”
Around Lula, the decision was interpreted as an attempt by the American government to interfere in the Brazilian elections in favor of the Bolsonaro opposition. In an official note, the Presidency did not mention names, but spoke of “traitors” and “false patriots” — a reference interpreted as being directed at the Bolsonaro family. In a speech on the same day, Lula called Flávio a traitor.
In the episode at the end of 2006, Military Police booths and buses were hit. In the most serious case, an interstate bus with 28 passengers, which had left Cachoeiro de Itapemirim (ES) bound for São Paulo, was intercepted by criminals while passing through Rio and set on fire. Seven passengers, sitting at the back of the vehicle, were unable to escape and burned to death.
Despite Lula’s speech, the case did not receive special legal treatment. Marcelo Ricardo Pereira, accused of leading drug trafficking in Morro do Tuiuti, in the north of Rio, was named as the mastermind of the attack and arrested for illegal possession of weapons in 2010, but was never charged for the episode.
Arrested again in 2017 and convicted of trafficking, he fled in May 2024, while serving a semi-open sentence, and was recaptured in January 2025. The report was unable to locate his defense.
The Presidency’s Communication Secretariat stated, in a note to Sheetthat there was no change in Lula’s understanding of the topic.
“The terror caused by these organizations in communities seeks to obtain profit through crime, especially through drug and weapons trafficking, and cannot be confused with the type of action for ideological, political and religious reasons of international terrorism”, said the note, further stating that the government “will not accept the use of arbitrary measures coming from abroad as a pretext to attack sovereignty and the national economy”.
The text also cited the recent approval of the Anti-Faction Law. “The government of Brazil runs the ‘Brazil against Brazil’ program, which fights factions and militias from its armed wing on street corners to its top floor”, states the text.
Lula is in Évian-les-Bains, France, where he is participating, as a guest of French President Emmanuel Macron, in the G7 summit. The trip takes place amid the American government’s decision to once again surcharge Brazilian products imported into the USA.
This Tuesday (16), in an expanded session of the summit, Lula defended that the fight against transnational organized crime be carried out in a coordinated manner between countries, but with respect for the sovereignty of nations.
When speaking, without directly mentioning the United States, Lula stated that organized crime “terrorizes communities and diverts public resources” and that combating drug trafficking “cannot be dissociated from other illicit activities such as money laundering and arms trafficking.”
