Brazilâs Ex-President Lula on Venezuela: Maduro is Democratic, GuaidĂł Should be in Prison, US Blockade Kills Civilians
In comments ignored by English-language media, Lula da Silva slammed the US coup attempt against Venezuela, calling NicolĂĄs Maduro a democratic leader who has supported dialogue while blasting Juan GuaidĂł as a criminal.
By Ben Norton – March 30, 2020
The far-right government of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is one of Washingtonâs closest allies in Latin America. It has played a major supporting role in the Donald Trump administrationâs coup attempt against Venezuela, even supporting a terror plot against the government of President NicolĂĄs Maduro.
This March, the Bolsonaro administration signed a historic military agreement, bringing Brazil directly into the US imperial sphere of influence, essentially merging the countryâs defense industry with Washingtonâs military-industrial complex.
Days before the deal was finalized, however, Brazilâs former president, the left-wing labor organizer Lula da Silva, spoke out vociferously against US meddling in Latin America, harshly criticizing Washingtonâs putsch against Evo Morales in Bolivia and its ongoing coup attempt against Venezuela.
In an interview with Brazilian media that has yet to be covered in the English-language press, Lula condemned US-backed Venezuelan coup leader Juan Guaidó as a warmongering criminal who should be in prison. He went on to emphasize that President Nicolås Maduro is a democratically elected leader who has encouraged peace and diplomacy.
âEurope and the United States canât recognize a fraud who declares himself to be president,â Lula said, referring to GuaidĂł. âIt is not right. Because if fashion takes over democracy, it is thrown in the garbage, and any scammer can declare themself president. I could declare myself president of Brazil, but where would democracy go?â
Lula was interviewed by Folha de S.Paulo, the most widely circulated Brazilian newspaper, which is owned by an elite family of billionaire media oligarchs.
When the paper pushed back against his comments, calling Maduro a âdictator,â Lula stressed that the Venezuelan president was elected, and has shown the kind of patience and restraint that no other leader would in similar circumstances.
âHe [GuaidĂł] should be in prison,â Lula said. âAnd Maduro was so democratic and did not arrest him when he went to Colombia to try to instigate an invasion of Venezuela.â
âThe one who is taking the initiative to talk is Maduro, not GuaidĂł,â Lula stated. âGuaidĂł would like the Americans to invade Venezuela â in fact, he even tried to force it.â
The newspaper pushed back again, saying Maduro has presided over an economic crisis in Venezuela.
âWhether his government is doing well or not, thatâs another story. But you arenât going to attack all of the countries that arenât doing well,â Lula responded.
âPeople canât criticize Maduro and not criticize the blockade. The blockade doesnât attack soldiers, it doesnât kill the guilty, the blockade kills innocents,â the former Brazilian president said.
These remarks from Lula received virtually no coverage in the English-language press, although they were widely covered in Portuguese- and Spanish-language media.
Lula defends Bolivian President Evo Morales
The Brazilian paper also pushed Lula to denounce Bolivian President Evo Morales, who was overthrown in a US-backed far-right military coup in November 2019.
Folha de S.Paulo noted that Morales had run for a fourth term as president, although the paper failed to mention that Boliviaâs Supreme Court permitted him to do so.
In the first round of the October 2019 election, Morales won with more than a 10 percent margin.
The newspaper falsely claimed that there were irregularities in the election â a myth initially spread by the Organization of American States (OAS) that has subsequently been debunked by numerous investigations by top scholars.
Lula defended Morales and his government against the newspaperâs claims that the Bolivian election was marred by supposed âcomplications.â
âWasnât George Bush complicated in his election against Al Gore? It was complicated, Bush took control of the government for eight years,â Lula replied.
âWas Trump not complicated? It was complicated, and he took power,â he said.
âWas Bolsonaro not complicated? Everyone know the farce of âfake news.’â
US coups brought extreme-right to power in Brazil
Remarks like these illustrate why Washington has backed coups and meddled in Brazilâs internal politics in order to overthrow Lula and his left-wing Workersâ Party and prevent them from returning to power.
Lula has not only been one of the most popular politicians in Brazil, he represents a regional buffer against US hegemony. When he left office in 2010, after completing his second term as head of state, he had a staggering 87 percent approval rating â one of the highest in the entire world.
Lulaâs successor from the Workersâ Party, President Dilma Rousseff, was ousted in 2016 in a parliamentary coup led by Brazilâs right-wing opposition and a collection of oligarchs that was backed behind the scenes by the United States.
Lula has repeatedly stressed that Washington played a decisive role in the coups in Brazil. âEverything that is happening has the hand of the United States on it,â he said in a 2019 interview.
âThe US created the Lava Jato investigation,â Lula added, referring to the supposed âanti-corruptionâ operation that was used to oust the Workersâ Party and install the far-right administration of Jair Bolsonaro, an extremist who has called for restoring the military dictatorship.
In 2018, Lula was campaigning again for the presidential election, and leading the polls by a huge margin. It was only then that he was imprisoned on false charges of corruption, providing an opening for Bolsonaro to take power.
The judge who oversaw Lava Jato and imprisoned Lula, Sergio Moro, was subsequently rewarded by Bolsonaro with a post as minister of justice.
Immediately after taking office, Bolsonaro and Moro paid a special visit to CIA headquarters.
âNo Brazilian president had ever paid a visit to the CIA,â commented Celso Amorim, who served as Foreign Minister under Lula. âThis is an explicitly submissive position. Nothing compares to this.â
Ben Norton
Benjamin Norton is the founder and editor of the independent news website Multipolarista, where he does original reporting in both English and Spanish. Benjamin has reported from numerous countries, including Venezuela, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Ecuador, Honduras, Colombia, and more. His journalistic work has been published in dozens of media outlets, and he has done interviews on Sky News, Al Jazeera, Democracy Now, El Financiero Bloomberg, Al Mayadeen teleSUR, RT, TRT World, CGTN, Press TV, HispanTV, Sin Censura, and various TV channels in Mexico, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Bolivia. Benjamin writes a regular column for Al Mayadeen (in English and Spanish). He was formerly a reporter with the investigative journalism website The Grayzone, and previously produced the political podcast and video show Moderate Rebels. His personal website is BenNorton.com, and he tweets at @BenjaminNorton.
