The minister of the Lula government’s Institutional Relations Secretariat, Gleisi Hoffmann, filed a lawsuit this Monday, 16th, against senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ) for a video in which she is associated with criminal organizations.
Gleisi’s defense says that Flávio makes “nefarious use of abuse” of the right of expression and parliamentary inviolability “with the aim of annihilating the reputation of political opponents, through the propagation of fear and hatred”. The minister requests compensation for moral damages and the removal of the content.
The senator was contacted by the report, but did not want to comment.
The target video of the action was published by Flávio on Sunday, 15th. With the use of artificial intelligence, the publication uses Gleisi’s image to link her to violence and crime. “The PT’s connections with the underworld seem to have no limits. Lula and the PT always end up aligning themselves with what is no good”, wrote the senator.
“Have you noticed how they try to change the game? Accuse them of what you do, call them what you are. They share the same stage, and they even exchange compliments”, says the narration, without mentioning either Lula or Gleisi by name. “For them, drug traffickers are victims and must be supported by the government. And when the chance arises to get tougher against the factions, they find a way to stop it.”
The statement refers to a phrase said by Lula during a press conference in Jakarta, Indonesia. The PT member stated at the time that drug traffickers would also be victims of users. He later apologized for the comment.
Continues after advertising
The Lula government has also been criticized for its resistance to complying with the Trump administration’s request to classify the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) and the Comando Vermelho (CV) as terrorist organizations. Critics of this initiative in the government claim that the denomination could open a flank for American military interference on Brazilian soil, under the pretext of combating crime, but the opposition takes advantage of Lula’s position to say that he aims, deep down, to protect the factions.
Both the left and Bolsonarism have been using associations with organized crime as a means of targeting opponents. Last week, Gleisi and Guilherme Boulos, minister of the General Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic, published a video on social media that attributes ties to criminal organizations to Flávio.
Flávio stated at the time, in a note: “The PT lies. This is yet another fake news to try to save Lula and all those who are consuming the State from within. The only thing that the name Flávio Bolsonaro represents for any faction or criminal group is an executioner.”
As the issue of public security seems to gain centrality for the October elections, on the other hand, the government and opposition are trying to join the initiative to combat crime. The Ministry of Justice and the Bolsonaro caucus in Congress have been trying to influence as much as possible the direction given to the text of the proposed amendment to the Public Security Constitution (PEC), currently being processed in the Legislature.
Although the PEC was proposed by the Lula government, the opposition changed the text and led the discussion towards measures more palatable to conservative voters, such as toughening sentences for criminals, including proposing to reduce the age of criminal responsibility, which the left in general is against.
A Genial/Quaest survey released in November showed that 88% of respondents stated that penalties should be higher, while 73% defended that criminal organizations be classified as terrorists, precisely what the Lula government does not want.
Continues after advertising
Even though public security is the responsibility of states and municipalities and not the federal government, the Palácio do Planalto may suffer this wear and tear in the October elections. Therefore, since 2024, it has been trying to shield itself from criticism, by proposing both the PEC and other measures such as the Anti-Faction bill, also being processed in Congress.
