With Lula Da Silva, Brazil Set to Join the New Paradigm

On Jan. 1, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was inaugurated for the third time as President of Brazil, having previously served for two terms from 2003-2010. Since his disgraced predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, had fled the country on Dec. 30 for Florida, Lula and his Vice President Geraldo Alckmin were sworn in by the presidents of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. Delegations from 120 countries were present for the ceremony, including heads of government or ministers from 53 of them.

Lula takes office at a time of great national and international turmoil in which Brazil is very polarized, so the challenges ahead are great. If he is able to follow through on his stated intention to join Argentina in fighting for economic development in South America, and in advancing cooperation in the framework of the BRICS, his presidency could reshape relations in the entire region. He vowed in his inaugural speech to launch a great “national reconstruction”, and put an end to the “national destruction” that Bolsonaro wrought. The priorities he listed include:

• Take up once more Ibero-American integration, strengthen cooperation with the BRICS, establish greater ties with African nations; strengthen the Common Market of the South (Mercosur) and recreate Unasur (the Union of South American Nations). Maintain an active dialogue not only with regional governments but also with the governments of the world.

• Care for the 33 million Brazilians who have been left in poverty and make sure that every citizen has three meals a day. Restore all the public services and anti-poverty programs that Bolsonaro canceled. The budgets for healthcare, education, culture and science and technology must all be restored, he said, as Bolsonaro had left those coffers empty.

• Environmentalism—achieve “zero deforestation” of the Amazon and zero greenhouse gasses emission. This is Lula’s vulnerability, which leaves his government open to the machinations of the Green mafia and Malthusian Green Reset agenda.

• Reverse and investigate Bolsonaro’s “genocidal” policy on Covid, which produced 36.3 million cases and 694,000 deaths in Brazil.