Ex-Brazilian President Lula:'Bolsonaro Is Setting the Whole Country on Fire'
Ex-Brazilian President Lula
'Bolsonaro Is Setting the Whole Country on Fire'
In an interview with DER SPIEGEL, former Brazilian President Lula da Silva discusses the loneliness of his prison term, the U.S. influence on Brazil and the threats he says are posed by the country's current leader, Jair Bolsonaro.
June 07, 2019 05:51 PM
Seven months ago, DER SPIEGEL correspondent Jens Glüsing asked the Brazilian Supreme Court for permission to conduct an interview with the country's former president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who has been in prison for over a year. Until April, all interview requests had been rejected, but permission was then unexpectedly granted. Glüsing was allowed to speak to Lula for 60 minutes in a windowless conference room at police headquarters in the city of Curitiba in southern Brazil. Two armed policemen were present for the duration of the interview. DER SPIEGEL's correspondent was permitted to greet the former president with a handshake, but after that he was required to keep a distance of about 3 meters (about 10 feet).
The former president seemed to be in excellent physical and mental condition and he also seemed combative. But Glüsing did not get to see the former Brazilian leader's actual prison cell. It's on the fourth floor of the building and doesn't have bars on the windows. Visitors report that it is 15 square meters in size. Lula keeps in touch with the world via a TV with a USB connection and is well informed about national and international politics. Each morning, prison staff save a press review and important documents on a USB stick for him. He has no access to the internet. The former president spends a lot of time reading in prison and he is permitted access to sunlight three times a week. At his request, a treadmill was installed in his cell so he can keep fit.
DER SPIEGEL: Mr. President, how are you doing? Are you lonely?
Lula: I can deal with it. I am also greeted loudly three times a day by my supporters, who camp outside on a street corner. When I get out of here, I will be eternally grateful to these people. I hope that once I leave this building through the main entrance, I can have a proper drink with them.
DER SPIEGEL: You've always been a very communicative, sociable person. How are you able to stand such a small cell?
Lula: I will tell you something I haven't told anyone before. When I started my career in the labor union many years ago, I was extremely shy. Whenever I was supposed to speak at an event, I got nervous. To prepare myself, I stuck photos of many people on the wall of my room and practiced my speech in front of them. I was speaking to an imaginary audience. When I feel like speaking to an audience in my cell today, I also just stick photos to the wall.
More:
https://www.spiegel.de/international/world/interview-with-ex-brazilian-president-lula-a-1271395.html#ref=rss
