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Thousands rally for democracy in Brazil to oppose potential Bolsonaro coup

THOUSANDS of people rallied for democracy at the University of Sao Paulo’s law school on Thursday in the face of threats by President Jair Bolsonaro to dispute the results of October’s election.

The event was the high point of a series of rallies building up to “the August 11 of democracy,” with a public letter opposing any interference with the election approaching a million signatures.

The law school was chosen as the scene for a 1977 rally at which A Letter to Brazilians, calling for a return of the rule of law following a military coup, was read out.

Former justice minister Carlos Dias, who helped write the 1977 letter, said: “We are at risk of a coup, so civil society must stand up and fight.”

Passing cars honked and drivers shouted encouragement at demonstrators who chanted pro-democracy slogans and erected a giant inflatable voting machine with the motto Respect the Vote. 

President Bolsonaro is tipped to lose the October 2 vote to former president and Workers Party leader Luiz Inacio “Lula” da Silva.

But the incumbent has repeatedly attacked the integrity of the electoral process, saying Brazil’s voting machines cannot be trusted and encouraging supporters to rally against the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, which he described at a rally as “those little deaf people in black capes.” 

In speeches, he has suggested elections could be suspended if reforms he wants to the system are not passed, and that “only God” can remove him from power. 

Last week, army officials visited the electoral authorities’ headquarters, saying they needed to inspect the voting machines’ source codes. 

Protester Carlos Silveira, who carried a placard reading “the military doesn’t count votes,” said: “We are here because it’s riskier not to do anything. Bolsonaro has suggested a big anti-democratic act before the election and the military has remained on his side.”

Mr Bolsonaro has also courted controversy by seeking to hold a joint party-political campaign rally and national army parade along Rio de Janeiro’s Cocacabana beach on September 7, Brazil’s independence bicentenary.

The Communist Party of Brazil warned that he intended to “fill Cocacabana beach with army tanks and fanatical supporters to accelerate the coup.” 

But Rio’s mayor said that the army has not requested any changes to its usual independence-day parade route.

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