Campaign for Direct Elections in Brazil Turns 40 in Times of Democracy Threats
Despite its defeat in Congress, the movement propelled the end of the dictatorship and left a legacy that today is under attack
Feb.27.2023 1:47PM
Oscar Pilagallo
On March 2, 1983, the amendment that proposed the restoration of direct presidential elections obtained enough signatures to be introduced in Congress. The ‘Diretas Já campaign’ would soon attract the support of politicians opposing the dictatorship and vast sections of the population —with the decisive participation of the press, especially Folha—, becoming the largest popular political mobilization in the country's history.
SÃO PAULO, SP, 16.04.1984: 'Diretas Já' movement turns 40 in times of democracy threats (Foto: Jorge Araújo/folhapress) - Jorge Araújo/Folhapress
Despite its defeat in Congress, it boosted the process of re-democratization and the achievements of the 1988 Constitution, a legacy today attacked by authoritarian threats, such as the invasion of the headquarters of the three Powers, in Brasilia, on January 8.
Four decades after the ‘Diretas Já’, at a time when it recalls the largest popular campaign and the most exciting civic celebration of its history, Brazil finds itself, once again, in the position of having to make the intransigent defense of democracy the axis of its political action. The parallelism between the two historical situations has visible limits.
In the mid-1980s, we were fighting a military dictatorship, which, two decades after being implemented, was living its death throes. Today, without the democratic regime having been broken, we face the latent threat gestated in what was left of an authoritarian project whose most fanatical supporters, appealing to violence, are reluctant to accept the verdict of the polls.
https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/brazil/2023/02/campaign-for-direct-elections-turns-40-in-times-of-democracy-threats.shtml
