Barroso blames Bolsonaro’s allies for Congress’ confrontation of STF decisions

The president of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), Luís Roberto Barroso, stated that the confrontation between the Legislative Branch and the Court is the result of the coordination of the group of parliamentarians allied with former president Jair Bolsonaro. In an interview with the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo, published on the 30th, Barroso stated that “there is a political motivation to mobilize radical bases in the speech against the Supreme Court”. According to him, these parliamentarians are working to please their own bases.

Barroso also added that the “former president attacked the court and offended its members with a very high level of incivility. In any part of the world, this would be terrifying.” The president of the STF also adds that under President Lula’s administration the environment is more harmonious. “I myself have voted for theses that pleased and displeased the government, as is my duty to do. The good part is that I was not insulted on any of the occasions. This is already an important difference in life”, he considers.

In September, the STF overturned the thesis that defines a time frame for the appropriation of indigenous lands. In response, the National Congress approved a bill in the opposite direction to what was defined by the STF, by establishing the time frame for the demarcation of indigenous lands, in the same month of September. Parliamentarians also overturned the vetoes made by President Lula. At the same time, the Federal Senate approved a PEC that limits the powers of Supreme Court ministers.

Barroso stated that he had warned Senate President Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-RO) that “messing with the Supreme Court, in the year in which it was invaded by anti-democratic coup plotters, is bad symbolism.”

For Barroso, ministers should not care about public opinion about the Court

A survey by Datafolha, this December, showed that the STF’s disapproval increased, from 31% to 38%. But for the president of the Court, public opinion should not be so considered and that “the Supreme Court has done a lot of good for the country. In defending democracy, we provide an important service.” “We managed to stop authoritarian populism, we provided an essential service to the country, which is the preservation of the Constitution and democracy,” he said.

“The Supreme Court fulfilled its role. Public opinion is a somewhat volatile concept, it varies and changes public opinion frequently. I am a guy who lives for history and not for the next day”, he highlighted. He also said that the issues dealt with by the STF divide the population and that “to some extent someone is always unhappy”.

Regarding the acts of January 8, Barroso believes that the STF must take tough decisions so that situations like this do not happen again in future elections. He also added that “as time goes by, this reaction decreases and people start to feel sorry”, when talking about the punishments received by prisoners during the acts.