Shuttle: It is necessary to punish the financiers of the coup acts, says agro entrepreneur

It is necessary to rigorously determine the financiers of the acts that took place on Sunday (8) in Brasília. The funding is huge, and there is a lot of money behind this movement.

The assessment is by Marcello Brito, agribusiness entrepreneur and former president of Abag (Brazilian Association of Agribusiness).

The search for destabilization of the country was very serious and, this time, one cannot, as always happens, pass the hand on the head of the offenders and nothing can be done.

He believes, however, that the first reactions have been satisfactory. The culprits, however, must be held accountable. Punishments show the strength of democracy, he says.

In previous movements, such as strikes by unions and truck drivers, even when considered illegal, fines and punishments were applied, but all were forgiven, says the businessman.

“The leniency of the authorities in recent years, including the Three Powers, is what led to what happened on Sunday.”

The first reactions show that the group is coming down from the pedestal and seeing that something is happening, says Brito. “Let’s see the results going forward.”

“There is a history of leniency in this country of people translating the law as they see fit. I hope that line was crossed on Sunday and that we can be born with a more effective model of democracy.”

Brito believes that the Three Powers lacked a little more wit. They thought it was just a group, but the number of people and the degree of destruction this Sunday was not by chance.

Specialists who follow the extreme right movements were already warning that something big was being built in Brazil.

This movement was not born now. It started two decades ago, grew and consolidated in the last government, with the support of Jair Bolsonaro, his family and his ministers.

Brazil follows the path of several countries where there is clearly demarcated terrain with left, right and center. The Brazilian problem is that the center is broken, cracked and demobilized. It needs to be rebuilt, according to the businessman.

Brito does not rule out the presence of agribusiness in these movements. Within the sector, as in all others in the economy, there are supporters from the left and the right, but the stage of evolution of agro at the moment makes it more evident. If the industry hadn’t withered, it would have, he says.

There are people within agribusiness who strongly and publicly support this movement. Others are radically against it and have spoken out openly. There are also those who have been trying to run the country more leniently.

The stridency of the movement during the Bolsonaro government, however, had never been seen in the country with such content. Brito says that one cannot, however, blame agribusiness, as many have been doing.

Agro participates in these demonstrations, but it is a minority, which does not represent the sector of 5 million producers.

Entities, even those that supported the Bolsonaro government, demonstrated against the attacks in Brasilia. Aprosoja-MT (Mato Grosso Soy and Corn Producers Association) stated, in a note, that it repudiates the invasions and acts of vandalism.

“As an entity that values ​​compliance with laws and the Constitution, we defend freedom of thought and peaceful demonstration, but we can never agree with the invasion and depredation of any property, whether public or private.”

The association also highlighted in the note that “agro is not composed only of large companies, but rather and, mainly, of people ranging from small farmers, family farmers, small, medium and large producers, who dedicate their lives, economies, and their families to produce food with respect”.

For Aprosoja-MT, the statements that attribute the sector’s participation in the attacks are inappropriate and do not portray the importance of agribusiness for the country. “We are against land grabbing, invasion of private property, illegal deforestation and unrestricted use of pesticides in crops.”

The entity also says in the note that it values ​​democracy and is against any act that causes damage to Brazil. He also states that he is opposed to conclusions that do not represent the truth.

The ABPA, from the poultry and pig farming sector, stated that it vehemently repudiates the attacks and acts of vandalism on Sunday. The entity emphasizes the conviction of the agroindustry in the preservation of democracy and that there is no other admissible way of manifestation besides the peaceful one.

For the ABPA, “violent acts are criminal and must be punished with all the rigor of the law”. When contacted, Aprosoja Brasil and the CNA (Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock of Brazil) had not manifested themselves until the conclusion of this text.