Brazilian ex-leader Lula faces jail
Could spell an end to his bid for re-election
RIO DE JANEIRO •Brazil’s elections were thrown into chaos Thursday as former president Luis Inacio Lula da Silva was ordered to prison for his part in an international corruption scandal.
The former socialist leader, known as Lula, was told of his fate in a dramatic Supreme Court ruling that looks almost certain to bar him from running for office again in October. He hoped the court would allow him to remain free while he appealed against a 12-year prison sentence.
His imminent detention, following a conviction last year for accepting a seaside apartment as a bribe, leaves the presidential field wide open.
The ruling over da Silva’s jail term all but kills off the 72-year-old’s chances of running for election again, given Brazil’s “clean hands” legislation that bars those with convictions from the presidential ballot.
Brazilians waited late into the night before the court finally handed down its verdict on whether da Silva should be imprisoned for a conviction relating to a sprawling money laundering scandal that has been slowly picking off officials and politicians for four years.
The televised hearing, which lasted 10 hours, saw justices split 5-5 until the presiding judge cast the deciding ballot and sealed his fate.
Divisions were also on show outside the courtroom with protests and rival protests sweeping the country in two nights of extraordinary social and political pressure. Despite the scandal, da Silva remains hugely popular for leading Brazil through an exceptional period of growth.
The scandal stems from a sweeping inquiry into Lava Jato, or Operation Car Wash, a huge money laundering inquiry that has exposed financial kickbacks paid by Brazil’s largest construction firm to politicians across Latin America and Africa.
The investigation has already played a hand in bringing down da Silva’s successor Dilma Rousseff and has seen Michel Temer, the current president, charged and his approval rating plummet. Both deny fraud.
Sending da Silva to prison will further cripple his election hopes, even though the Superior Electoral Tribunal will rule on whether he can be on the ballot.