Tens of thousands marched across Brazil to oppose bills seeking to shield lawmakers from prosecution and grant amnesty to former president Jair Bolsonaro, sentenced to 27 years in
This Sunday, Brazil witnessed massive demonstrations against two controversial initiatives moving through Congress.
The first, nicknamed the “shield bill,” would expand lawmakers’ immunity; the second proposes an amnesty for those responsible for the January 8, 2023 coup attempt, including former president Jair Bolsonaro, recently sentenced to 27 years in prison.
The unifying slogan was clear: “No amnesty.” From Rio de Janeiro to São Paulo and even in Brasília, citizens took to the streets in all 26 states. On Rio’s iconic Copacabana beach, the protest took on a cultural tone, with artists like Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, and Chico Buarque joining the outcry.
The shield bill, already approved by the Chamber of Deputies, requires that any criminal charges against lawmakers be authorized by Congress through a secret vote. Supporters, including Chamber president Hugo Motta, argue it would protect legislators from political persecution.
Social media erupted with criticism. Pop star Anitta and other cultural figures slammed the bill as a pact of immunity. “Imagine someone commits a crime and can’t be prosecuted because they’re a congressman. That’s what’s at stake,” she said in a viral post.
One day later, Congress fast-tracked another divisive proposal: a law granting amnesty to around 700 convicted Bolsonaro supporters, including the former president himself. Flavio Bolsonaro, the ex-president’s son and key promoter of the bill, justified it as a way to “turn the page” on the post-election turmoil of 2022.
In Brasília, protesters gathered in front of Congress with a giant inflatable effigy of Bolsonaro, caricatured with a mustache and bloodied hands. “We are here to denounce this Congress of criminals and corrupt people dressed as politicians who want to forgive themselves,” said Aline Borges, a 34-year-old environmental activist.
The protests highlighted Brazil’s divisions but also revealed broad resistance to political impunity. For many demonstrators, shielding lawmakers and granting amnesty are two sides of the same coin: an erosion of the rule of law and a direct threat to democracy.
Critics, however, describe it as a move to secure impunity for corruption cases and other crimes. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s government opposes it. Justice Minister Ricardo Lewandowski warned it could open the doors for organized crime to infiltrate Parliament and further weaken democratic institutions.
The fate of both bills now lies in the Senate, where public pressure and mobilization may prove decisive. On the streets, however, the message remains unchanged: neither shield, nor amnesty.
