Diplomatist Magazine DIplomatist September 2018 | Page 42

PERSPECTIVE
a global shift towards right wing
populism has been exhibited by
countries across Europe, Asia, and
North America. Brazil is not aloof
from the political rhetoric that vilifi es
immigrants and scoffs at political
correctness — Trump like persona
has found its appeal around the world
and in Brazil. An ‘outsider’ who
promises a complete restructuring
of an outdated system, talks about
restoring a glorious past, and is not
afraid to call out the proverbial spade
is no longer just the characteristics of
the current American president, these
have metamorphosed into populist
caricature that is usually backed by
the fi nancially well to do majorities
of a country.
Brazil seems to have found their
Trump. As Brazil gets ready to
elect governors and members to the
legislatures in all of its 27 states, as
well as a new president; the growing
popularity of the 63 year old Jair
Bolsonaro is indicative of the Brazil’s
growing proclivity towards right
wing nationalism. Bolsonaro is a
self-proclaimed right wing nationalist
who used to be a Captain in the
Brazilian army. He echoes Trump
in mannerisms and rhetoric and
has also been in seeking council of
the former Trump advisor Stephen K. Bannon. Bolsonaro
almost mirroring Trump has been quick to attack media and
has blamed socialist left leaning policies for the economic
recession in the country. In a reality, where many Brazilians
see no fundamental change in their political structure and
believe that most politicians are set to contest and win again in
the upcoming elections despite the corruption charges against
them, Bolsonaro is being hailed as a messiah by his followers.
Bolsonaro’s rhetoric also mirrors that of Trump. His
comments about the indigenous people are extremely
unsavoury and have been criticised and been labeled as
racist in nature; however, the Brazilian courts have acquitted
Bolsanaro on accounts of racism and hate speech but has
to be present in court to defend himself on accusations of
slander and incitement to rape when he attacked a left leaning
congress woman in 2014.
His rhetoric on immigrants is also akin to that of Trump.
Bolsonaro has made his dislike for immigrants apparent
and a similar wave of anti-immigration can be perceived
in Brazil as it tightens measures
against the lawful and unlawful entry
of the Venezuelan immigrants. As
Venezuela faces massive challenges
of its own, the western hemisphere is
experiencing the Venezuelan exodus
of proportions analogous to that of
the Syrian crisis. Brazil shares 2200
km long border with Venezuela and
has deployed additional battalion
of guards to stop immigrants from
crossing over.
Bolsonaro has also denounced
any support for the LGBTQ
community comparing them to
pedophiles. His supporters, however,
labeled such statements as honest
and representative of the common
man, and which are meant to cut
through the elite platitudes that are
out of touch with Brazilian realities.
Bolsonaro, however, is not
running unopposed. Fernando
Haddad, the former mayor of Sao
Paolo and a left leaning politician
has emerged as a centre and centre-
left candidate. Haddad, much like
Rousseff, was found and encouraged
to run for the President by the former
Brazilian president Luiz Inacio
Lula da Silva who is currently
imprisoned on charges of corruption.
Haddad has the advantage of being
a seasoned politician and a former mayor of one of the
biggest Brazilian cities. As the Workers Party (PT) candidate,
Haddad is gaining ground in the pre election polls. It is being
speculated that the Brazilian elections will be a battle between
the left and the right.
Bolsonaro represents the populist right wing regimes that
can be traced back to their fascist origins; Haddad represents
a thought process that could be labeled as the antithesis of
Bolsonaro. Brazil is in a precarious position where it could
return to its authoritarian past or continue on the path of
democratic-socialism. It could also settle into a condition
of a restricted democracy. It is important to note whatever
may be the outcome of this election, it will impact the rest
of the Latin American. It will be interesting to see the path
that Brazil takes and the infl uence it has on its neighbours.
Bolsonaro’s rhetoric also
mirrors that of Trump.
His comments about the
indigenous people are
extremely unsavoury
and have been criticised
and been labeled as
racist in nature
*Aparaajita Pandey is a PhD Scholar at the Centre for
Canadian, US, and Latin American Studies at Jawaharlal
Nehru University.
42 • Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Diplomatist • Vol 6 • Issue 9 • September 2018, Noida