08/23/2020 - 18:41
- Clarín.com
- World
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro threatened a journalist on Sunday who questioned him about the alleged participation of the first lady in an illicit payment scheme.
"You want to blow your mouth out," the far-right president replied to a journalist from the newspaper O Globo who questioned him about press reports involving his wife, Michelle Bolsonaro, and a former adviser of his son, the Senator Flavio Bolsonaro.
The president visited the Metropolitan Cathedral of Brasilia, as usual, and was approached by the media. Journalists questioned the threat but Bolsonaro left without commenting further.
In a note released shortly thereafter, O Globo stated that it "repudiates President Jair Bolsonaro's attack on a journalist for the newspaper who was limited to exercising his function." "Such intimidation shows that Jair Bolsonaro disregards the duty of any public servant , no matter the position, to be accountable to the population," the statement added.
Crusoé magazine published this month that Fabrício Queiroz, a retired police officer, friend of Jair Bolsonaro and former adviser to Flavio Bolsonaro, would have deposited 21 checks for 72,000 reais (about $ 22,000 at the 2016 exchange rate) to Michelle Bolsonaro between 2011 and 2016.
The magazine affirms that the information appears in Queiroz's bank statements.
Queiroz and Flavio Bolsonaro are under investigation for the alleged diversion of salaries of officials of the president's son during his tenure as regional deputy in Rio de Janeiro.
The first lady has not commented on the case.
Long list
The non-governmental organization Reporteros Sin Frontera (RSF) has denounced in recent months the high number of attacks by Bolsonaro on the media and on press freedom.
According to a study by the National Federation of Journalists, attacks on communicators in Brazil, including assassinations, assaults and threats, jumped 54.07% last year, from 135 in 2018 to 208 in 2019, and the vast majority were attacks responsibility of the far-right leader.
The Federation recorded 121 public statements last year in which Bolsonaro attacked or discredited the press.
According to RSF, the president's rhetoric against the press has also encouraged his followers to intimidate journalists.
Last May Reporters Without Borders demanded security guarantees for journalists who cover the statements that the president grants in front of the official residence of the Presidency in the face of the increase in attacks by followers of the president on the press.
"Reporters Without Borders denounces the escalation of attacks against the press and urges the authorities to intensify protection measures in place to guarantee the work of journalists," the organization said in its note.
Source: AFP and EFE
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