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Pro-Bolsonaro crowds thin as Brazil handover begins

Police say they have broken up more than 960 roadblocks imposed by supporters of far-right outgoing President Bolsonaro after his election defeat to leftist Lula.

Reuters

Crowds have diminished since Bolsonaro urged supporters to "unblock the roads."

Brazilian police have nearly finished clearing hundreds of roadblocks by supporters of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, who have been protesting since his election loss to veteran leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

"All federal highways are now free of roadblocks," though five partial closures that don't impede traffic remain in two of Brazil's 27 states, federal highway police said on Friday.

Police have broken up more than 960 roadblocks, they said.

After Lula's narrow victory on Sunday, Bolsonaro supporters blocked highways and camped out at army bases to demand a military intervention to keep the defeated incumbent in power.

The blockades threatened to cause havoc in Latin America's largest economy, but diminished since Bolsonaro urged supporters on Wednesday to "unblock the roads."

Pro-Bolsonaro protests outside military bases had dwindled in Brasilia on Friday morning to just 100 — while in Sao Paulo there remained about 300 and all had cleared out in Rio de Janeiro, the AFP news agency said.

Ex-army captain Bolsonaro was silent for nearly two days after the election, raising fears he would try to cling to power with the backing of hardline supporters.

But after a series of key allies acknowledged the result, he said on Tuesday he would respect the constitution, and authorised the start of the transition process for Lula's inauguration on January 1.

Neither concedes nor congratulates

But Bolsonaro has still not explicitly conceded defeat nor congratulated Lula.

The outgoing president met briefly on Thursday with vice president-elect Geraldo Alckmin, who is heading Lula's transition team.

Alckmin said the meeting had been "positive," and that Bolsonaro had promised "all information and assistance needed for a smooth transition."

Although Bolsonaro urged supporters to lift their roadblocks, he also encouraged "legitimate demonstrations," raising fears Brazil may still face turbulence.

In the latest violent incident linked to the divisive election campaign, a 12-year-old girl shot at a Lula victory party in the city of Belo Horizonte died Thursday of her wounds.

Ex-metalworker Lula, 77, who led Brazil from 2003 to 2010, won an unprecedented third term with 50.9 percent of the vote, to 49.1 percent for Bolsonaro — the closest presidential election in the country's modern history.

SOURCE: AFP