Gun lobby and militia bet big on Bolsonaro

Like an actor in a Wild West movie, Bolsonaro imitation of a shot with hands as a symbol of your identity extreme right. This hand gesture is a kind of motto in campaign events. Index finger points, thumb ‘triggers’. If the polls are correct, this Sunday is a true symbol of an era that could end with Luiz Inacio ‘Lula’ da Silva’s first-round victory. But the retired captain went far beyond a warmongering imitation: he signed 40 decrees in support of his slogan “an armed people is never enslaved“.

scary figures

This rhetoric of the gun was translated, curiously, into unpublished issues, they are not part of the electoral debate: Official permits to carry weapons disguised under the figures of “hunters”, “sport shooters” and “gatherers” increased from 350,683 to 1,006,725 in 2018, a number exceeding the number of police officers spread across a continental area: 406,384. The data is partially misleading and will not explain the magnitude of the problem. According to ‘Folha’ The military itself admitted that it was unable to produce detailed reports on weapons obtained under these categories from Sao Paulo.

The Brazilian Forum of Public Safety estimates that around 4.4 million guns are circulating in private hands. A third of that number has expired permits. “There are 700,000 people armed with virtually no inspection on the eve of the election contest,” warned Bruno Langeani, president of the Soy de Paz Institute and author of “Firearms in Brazil: Inducing Violence.” Langeani detected a increase in purchases in recent months. The magazine ‘Piauí’ estimates that 1,300 guns are registered each day. 40,000 imported in July alone. The legal framework allowed members of criminal groups in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro to arm themselves and pay for their rifles or pistols in easy installments despite extensive criminal records.

Militia and Bolsonarism

The same political logic facilitated the growth of illegal armed groups in Rio de Janeiro that make up ex-military police and firefighters. They were “born under the protection of the controlling mafia.game make a mistake”as known underground lottery that moves millions of euros. The matrix of militia expansion was compelling: security to cariocas in exchange for money. They have also become informal providers of transportation services, cable television, gas sales, and bottled water. They even charge for examinations in public hospitals.

that luck parallel state It affects the lives of 1.7 million people living in a “wonderful city”. this areas under their control increased by 387% It grows from 52.6 km² to 256.3 km² in a period of 16 years. The militias are located mainly in the western part of Rio de Janeiro and have territorial disputes with the main drug trafficking groups Comando Vermelho (CV), Tercer Comando Puro (TCP) and Amigos de los Amigos (ADA). However, there is no lack of association between them. In addition to displaying rifles and shrapnel, its members are often ardent defenders of Bolsonaro. Not only do they support his candidacy. Militia are trying to get their seats in city councils and even the National Congress.

old relationships

Throughout the election campaign, Lula has described his opponent as a “militia” more than once. The Bolsonaro clan and the relations between these groups have been widely known since 2019. In fact, his son, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, had close ties to Adriano Magalhães da Nóbrega, known as “Captain Adriano”, who died in the middle of a war in 2020. clash with security forces.

The current governor of the state of Rio, Claudius Castro, he is an ally of the president and polls predict he will be re-elected. The right to take up arms is part of their belief. A few days ago, Luiz Fernando da Costa’s daughter had the support of dentist and municipal legislator Fernanda Costa, whose nickname is Fernandinho Beira-Mar. drug dealer sentenced to life in prison and came to be considered the Brazilian version of Pablo Escobar. The circle of violence closes without a seam in the air.