‘Unprecedented’ attack on human rights group in Brazil threatens freedom of expression

By CAROLINE GOMEZ and TIMOTHY JOHNSON-ALEXANDER-TANANOESABERGOReuters 12/12 Brazil: Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff speaks to the media after being inaugurated as head of the Workers’ Party in Brasilia, Brazil, February 18, 2021.
REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci/File Photo 1/12 A man kisses his hands in celebration as he walks through a fountain in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil March 7, 2019.
REUTERS: Paulo Eduardo Casares/File photo 2/12 Members of the Brazilian anti-corruption group “F.E.A.
R” shout slogans as they participate in a march to protest against the death of opposition politician Rodrigo Montano during a rally in Sao Paulo, Brazil February 19, 2021 Reuters 3/12 Workers walk past a statue of Brazilian soccer star Ronaldo at a memorial for victims of a bomb blast outside Sao Paulo’s Olympic Stadium in Sao Paolo, Brazil December 29, 2016.
REUTERS / Eduardo Moraes/File Photos 4/12 Protesters in Sao Paulo march to demand justice and recognition for the victims of the bombing in Sao Paula, Brazil on November 10, 2016, following a series of bomb attacks targeting public buildings in Brazil.
The country has been hit by an increase in attacks in recent months that authorities say are linked to the rising popularity of populist political parties, particularly the ruling Workers’ party.
On Tuesday, President Dilmaz Esquerra said police have found a bomb hidden in the trunk of a car that exploded near a stadium, killing 23 people.
The blasts also injured 29 others and wounded more than 200 people in Sao Pereira state, near Sao Paulo.
Brazil is in the midst of a massive political crisis as the ruling party faces widespread criticism over alleged corruption and the murder of opposition leader Rodrigo Montanos.
(Rio de Janeiro state governor Joaquim Silva is on the list of people to be investigated over the blasts, a government official told Reuters on Tuesday.)
The attack on F.E