Lula remains behind bars

A BRAZILIAN appeals court judge yesterday ruled former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva must remain in jail, in a dizzying day of orders and counter-orders months before the country’s presidential vote.

Though he is serving a 12year sentence for corruption, the wildly popular leftist Lula, 72, continues to lead opinion polls ahead of October’s election and has vowed his name will be on the ballot.

In his ruling, Judge Pedro Gebran Neto overturned a shock order to free Lula, which dropped hours earlier from Judge Rogerio Favreto.