A Brazilian judge has ordered former President Jair Bolsonaro to be placed under house arrest for breaking a social media ban, a move that has intensified the conflict between the court and the politician who is accused of plotting a coup. Bolsonaro is currently on trial at the Supreme Court for allegedly attempting to remain in power after his defeat to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in the 2022 elections. US President Donald Trump has sought to penalize Brazil, a long-time American ally, by imposing substantial tariffs on Latin America’s largest economy in response to what he describes as a politically motivated “witch hunt” against Bolsonaro.
The 70-year-old Bolsonaro is prohibited from using social media during the trial, and third parties are also banned from sharing his public statements. However, on Sunday, his allies defied the order by posting a video online of a call between the former army captain and his eldest son, Flavio, at a solidarity rally in Rio de Janeiro. Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes reacted strongly, stating that the judiciary would not permit a defendant to “treat it like a fool” because of his “political and economic power.” Citing Bolsonaro’s “repeated failure” to comply with court restrictions, he placed him under house arrest at his home in Brasilia. Moraes also prohibited the former leader (2019-2022) from receiving visitors, except for his lawyers, and from using mobile phones. He warned that any future transgression would result in detention. According to police, several mobile phones were seized from his home on Monday.
The United States condemned the new restrictions on Monday night, with the State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs issuing a statement on X. The bureau posted, “Minister Alexandre de Moraes, already sanctioned by the United States for human rights violations, continues to use Brazilian institutions to silence the opposition and threaten democracy.” It ended with, “Let Bolsonaro speak!” US officials added that they would “hold accountable all those who collaborate with or facilitate sanctioned conduct.” The US post was reshared by Bolsonaro’s politician son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, who had lobbied Washington to take punitive action against Brazil over the case. In a separate post, he wrote, “Brazil is no longer a democracy,” and referred to Moraes, who is presiding over the trial, as an “out-of-control psychopath.”
Last month, Moraes had ordered Bolsonaro to wear an ankle bracelet and instituted the social media ban. In an unprecedented move, Trump responded by banning Moraes from the United States and freezing his assets in US banks. Trump’s pressure campaign has angered many Brazilians but has gained him favor with Bolsonaro’s conservative base. At rallies in Rio, Brasilia, and Sao Paulo on Sunday, some demonstrators waved US flags or held signs that read “Thank you Trump.” Bolsonaro himself did not attend the rallies, as the Supreme Court had ordered him to stay home at night and on weekends throughout the trial. Prosecutors allege that Bolsonaro and seven co-accused attempted to overturn his 2022 election defeat, and the plot only failed because the military did not support it. He faces a 40-year sentence if convicted, with the trial expected to conclude in the coming weeks. After Lula’s inauguration in January 2023, Bolsonaro’s supporters stormed Brazil’s congress, damaging the chambers and attacking police, in scenes that were reminiscent of the attack by Trump supporters on the US Capitol two years earlier. Despite being banned from running, Bolsonaro hopes to stage a Trump-style comeback in Brazil’s 2026 presidential election. Lula, 79, has said he may seek a fourth term, health permitting. Last year, he was hospitalized for a brain hemorrhage following a fall in a bathroom.
