There was maximum attention from the police and the cities had been armored: so Anguillara and Padua were preparing to experience D-Day, the arrival this morning on a private visit of the president of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro, a fresh veteran of the G20 From Rome. A far from relaxed atmosphere awaits him, because the Venetian roots exhibited by the green-gold head of state at this moment are not too popular with many of his ancestors’ countrymen. Surely Bolsonaro will be inside the Municipality of Anguillara Veneta to be awarded honorary citizenship by the Northern League mayor Alessandra Buoso, in memory of the place that gave birth to paternal great-grandfather Vittorio. A choice opposed by the inhabitants, to the point that the other morning someone smeared the façade of the Municipality with paint and excrement with the words «Fora Bolsonaro». Another sure stop on the day of memory of the President of Brazil is in Padua, to visit the Basilica of Sant’Antonio and then the contact with some representatives of local Brazilian associations.
But Bolsonaro has chosen a change of program for the visit: instead of visiting the town hall of Anguillara Veneta, he arrived at a restaurant in the area, Villa Arca del Santo, a Venetian residence that is also located in Anguillara. A hundred supporters awaited him, whom he greeted warmly as the latter repeated slogans against the previous president Lula defined as “a thief”. Bolsonaro went out briefly to meet his fans, whom he ostentatiously greeted, having several selfies taken. Then the president of Brazil had lunch with 200 guests before his probable visit to the Basilica del Santo in Padua. The lunch was offered by the mayor Buoso, and during the lunch he was conferred honorary citizenship.
Anguillara, among Bolsonaro’s supporters: “Only lies about him. You journalists are all Communists”
«I am happy and excited to be here. I think you can see it, ”said Bolsonaro. While receiving the embrace of his supporters, he never wore the protective mask from Covid. «My grandparents left from here – he remembers -. I enjoy being among the good people. I am honored to represent our family in Brazil. We are doing an excellent job ». “We have a lot of popular support – he added – Despite everything we are carrying out an excellent job that is certainly recognized by the people and not recognized by the mass media. We want the Brazilians to be happy ».
Instead, according to the estimates of the police, there were about 200 people who had gathered against him in Anguillara Veneto, in front of the church. Many flags of the left were waving, among those present there is also the regional councilor of the Democratic Party Andrea Zanoni.
Bolsonaro, welcome from the stadium: the “torcida” of the supporters, while those who do not want to sing “Bella ciao”
Among the demonstrators in the square waiting for Bolsonaro, however, there was also a small group of Brazilians from various parts of the Veneto who, unlike the others, want to testify their closeness to the president. This is the case of Diene Matias, resident in Oderzo (Treviso), who for the occasion wanted to ‘dress up’ with the green-gold flag of her country of origin. “I was forced to come to Italy because there was corruption in Brazil: I defend Bolsonaro, I’m here to greet and welcome him.” Matias rejects the criticisms leveled at him: “The story of the Amazon is not true, it has not carried out any deforestation, you have to see with your own eyes to realize it”. The current president of Brazil, he continues, “has never used public money for his own business and is not against vaccines.”
Meanwhile, in Brazilian circles, the controversy over the violence suffered by some Brazilian journalists who were following Bolsonaro at the G20 in Rome has not subsided. Some Brazilian journalists reported moments of tension outside the Brazilian embassy as they were about to approach Bolsonaro. The reporters report that they have been yanked and harshly urged to get away from the security forces that protected the president. A reporter also had his cell phone stolen. “We just wanted to do our job – they denounce – and instead we have suffered these attacks. It has never been so difficult to do our job”, they underline referring to the climate they live with the presidency of Bolsonaro. “It was not clear – wrote the Guardian – whether the security agents were Brazilian or Italian. O Globo reported that the Italians had been entrusted with the task of guaranteeing security for Bolsonaro. “According to UOL journalist Jamil Chade, the violence also occurred by the Italian police . Chade filed a complaint with the carabinieri, and posted his complaint on twitter. “A few minutes after Bolsonaro had left the embassy – wrote Jamil Chade on UOL – the GloboNews team was attacked by Italian police officers, while one of them violently grabbed one of the reporters to push him into a car. Bolsonaro supporters were allowed to approach the president. The GloboNews reporter was p punched by security. ‘
Moments of tension
The protest against the Brazilian president does not stop: 500 demonstrators had lined up at the entrance of via Belludi, the road that leads to the Basilica of Sant’Antonio. Facing them, 10 meters away, a dense array of police forces with six vans and fire hydrants in action to disperse the protest. Protesters suffered a violent police charge when they tried to break through the security cordon and get closer to the basilica. The two police officers dispersed the demonstrators who ran away from via Belludi, to flow along via Roma, one of the main arteries of the city. All this happened just in the minutes when the Brazilian president took leave of Anguillara to reach Padua. It is not excluded that the demonstrators may regroup in front of the sacred building along the side streets.
Bolsonaro in Padua, demonstrators-police clashes: the charge and then the fire hydrants to disperse the crowd
Meanwhile, a girl was stopped following the clashes. Evaluations by investigators are underway to clarify his position. In the morning Bolsonaro had been to Anguillara to receive honorary citizenship. Here he also met with some distant relatives, descendants of the family who emigrated to Brazil at the end of the 19th century.
Demonstration also tomorrow in Pistoia
Tomorrow morning in front of the Cathedral of Pistoia there will be a demonstration promoted by the Palomar association, together with political parties, clubs and movements to protest against the presence of the president of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro in the city to commemorate the Brazilian war dead in the military votive monument in San Rocco locality, out of town. For the protest initiative, the police headquarters set up “services to guarantee the right to demonstrate in safety”. Bolsonaro should spend about an hour in the city.