In Brazil’s Copacabana and Paulista Avenue, thousands march opposing amnesty for ex-president Bolsonaro

Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - Aerial view of protesters in Sao Paulo carrying a banner of former president Jair Bolsonaro behind bars, opposing a bill to reduce his sentence and a constitutional amendment affecting indigenous rights, December 14, 2025.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Dec 15 — Tens of thousands of people marched in cities across Brazil on Sunday to voice opposition to a bill that would reduce the prison sentence of ex-president Jair Bolsonaro, convicted of plotting a coup.

Under the bill, which the Senate will consider on Wednesday, Bolsonaro could be granted parole just over two years into his 27-year sentence.

The marches were called by left-wing groups and activists, including iconic singer Caetano Veloso, after the conservative-controlled lower chamber of Congress passed the measure early Wednesday morning.

The far-right Bolsonaro was imprisoned in November after his conviction for a scheme to stop President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from taking office after the 2022 election.

In Rio de Janeiro on Sunday, nearly 19,000 people flooded the famed Copacabana Beach with banners reading “No amnesty” and “Congress, enemy of the people,” as Veloso and other musicians performed on a small stage.

“We are still here to wake up Congress. They cannot work for themselves. We are still here for Brazil’s forests, for women’s rights, for democracy. We are still here!” shouted actress Fernanda Torres.

Torres starred in Brazil’s first Oscar-winning film, “Ainda estou aqui” (”I’m Still Here”), about the country’s 1964-1985 dictatorship.

In the megalopolis of Sao Paulo, an estimated 14,000 people filled the iconic Paulista Avenue.

Aerial view of protesters at Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro, opposing a bill that could reduce former president Jair Bolsonaro’s sentence, December 14, 2025. — AFP pic

“We are on the streets to say that we continue to defend our democracy, and defending democracy means saying that the coup leader belongs in jail,” Keit Lima, a Sao Paulo city councilor, told AFP.

Protesters also marched in the capital Brasilia, from the National Museum to Congress.

If passed, the bill would also benefit supporters of Bolsonaro who were imprisoned for storming government buildings shortly after Lula took office.

The January 8, 2023 assaults in Brasilia echoed the January 6, 2021 riots at the US Capitol by backers of US President Donald Trump.

Bolsonaro’s supporters in the conservative-majority Congress had for months weighed different options to ease his punishment, including a possible amnesty that fizzled out after the September protests.

The sentence reduction bill resurfaced this week, a few days after Bolsonaro anointed his son, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, as his successor ahead of 2026 presidential elections.

Flavio said last Sunday he would be willing to withdraw his candidacy in exchange for amnesty for his father, pointing to disarray among Brazil’s powerful conservative movement ahead of next year’s vote.

Lula could veto the bill if it passes the Senate, but Congress could vote to overturn it.

If Bolsonaro is released in two years, “we’ll have ended the legal process in the country, we will have destroyed the Constitution,” agronomist Viviane Anjos told AFP at the protest in Brasilia.

“We can’t let him out!” the 40-year-old said. — AFP