World

Brazil: Pro-Bolsonaro protest fizzles amid boosted security

Despite calls for a "mega-protest" to "retake power," turnout was significantly low in major cities

Brazil: Pro-Bolsonaro protest fizzles amid boosted security
Brazil: Pro-Bolsonaro protest fizzles amid boosted security 

Security was heightened in Brasilia on Wednesday as supporters of former president Jair Bolsonaro ramped up their efforts to launch a new wave of protests.

Published: undefined

The call to hold a "mega-protest" in several cities "to retake power" circulated on social media. Anticipating what was being touted as a major mobilization, security officials stood geared up with helicopter backup. Only a small number of demonstrators turned up at the planned protest sites.

Published: undefined

Journalists outnumbered protesters at Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana beach, where less than 10 protesters showed up, according to media reports.

Published: undefined

The AFP news agency said there was "virtually no turnout" in Brasilia, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

Published: undefined

Just one couple showed up in Brasilia's esplanade, which is surrounded by federal government buildings, the Associated Press news agency reported.

Published: undefined

"We were surprised to be the only ones here today," the AP quoted as saying Eunice Carvalho, a 58-year-old housewife who was joined by her husband. "People got scared after the imprisonments, which were excessive."

Published: undefined

Brazil authorities feared fresh unrest

Published: undefined

Thousands of Bolsonaro supporters stormed the presidency, Congress and Supreme Court in Brasilia on Sunday.

Published: undefined

About 1,500 people were arrested by the next day.

Published: undefined

Fearing a repeat of Sunday's violence, authorities sought to quell any efforts that could have resembled Sunday's rampage, in which hundreds of protestors stormed the government's three most important buildings.

Published: undefined

Since Bolsonaro's defeat in the last presidential election, his supporters have been clamoring for the military to launch a coup against Bolsonaro's successor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Published: undefined

Follow us on: Facebook, Twitter, Google News, Instagram 

Join our official telegram channel (@nationalherald) and stay updated with the latest headlines

Published: undefined