Brazil's supreme court orders intense monitoring of ex-President Bolsonaro

Sao Paulo, Aug 27 (IANS) Brazil's Supreme Court ordered a round-the-clock monitoring of former President Jair Bolsonaro for fear that he could attempt to flee house arrest ahead of a verdict in his coup attempt trial.

Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who is overseeing the case, on Tuesday granted a request from federal prosecutors after warning that Bolsonaro could seek refuge in a foreign embassy. Bolsonaro is currently confined to his residence in the national capital, Brasilia, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Moraes said the actions by Bolsonaro's son, lawmaker Eduardo Bolsonaro, who is in the United States lobbying against the trial and pressing for an amnesty in Congress, "demonstrate the possibility of Jair Messias Bolsonaro fleeing to evade the application of criminal law."

Final hearings in the case are scheduled for September 2, with Bolsonaro and 35 co-defendants, including former officials and military officers, facing judgment for their roles in the alleged coup attempt following Bolsonaro's defeat in Brazil's 2022 presidential election.

Earlier on July 18, a justice of Brazil's Supreme Federal Court decided to impose strict legal restrictions on Bolsonaro and his son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, for coercion, obstruction of justice, and attack on national sovereignty.

Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the measures include nightly house arrest on weekdays, full-time house arrest on weekends and holidays, wearing an electronic ankle monitor, and a ban on contacting foreign diplomats or visiting embassies and consulates, the supreme court said in a press release.

According to the release, the former president and his son had lobbied in the United States to solicit sanctions against Brazilian officials.

The justice stated that Brazil's sovereignty will never be negotiated, reaffirming the supreme court's determination to defend democratic and constitutional principles.

The decision followed US President Donald Trump's announcement of 50 per cent tariffs on Brazilian exports effective August 1. Trump linked the hefty tariffs to the ongoing legal proceedings against Bolsonaro.

--IANS

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