Toffoli releases Lula, but only for meetings with family members.
Brazilian Supreme Court Chief Justice Dias Toffoli has just authorized former President Lula, a political prisoner since April of last year, to leave prison to attend the funeral of his brother, Vavá. "It's a duty of the state," he said. However, Toffoli stipulated that Vavá's body be taken to a military unit. The intention is to prevent any photos or videos of Lula from being taken.
247 - Brazilian Supreme Court Chief Justice Dias Toffoli has just authorized former President Lula, a political prisoner since April of last year, to leave prison to attend the funeral of his brother, Vavá. "It's a duty of the state," he said. However, Toffoli stipulated that Vavá's body be taken to a military facility. The intention is to prevent any photos or videos of Lula from being taken.
The Vavá case caused a strong division within Bolsonaro's camp. On one side, Sergio Moro, through the Federal Police, acted to prevent Lula – whom he considers an enemy – from attending the funeral. However, the acting president, Hamilton Mourão, defended Lula's presence, arguing it was a humanitarian issue. Toffoli, who has military advisors at the Supreme Court, opted for an intermediate solution.
Lula was imprisoned in April of last year to prevent him from running in the presidential elections. Without Lula in the race, Jair Bolsonaro was elected and invited Moro to be his minister. Given this explicit political persecution, Lula is a strong candidate to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019. A public petition launched by Adolfo Perez Esquivel already has over half a million signatures.