MPF sues Union and deputy for encouraging coup acts in Natal

The Federal Public Ministry (MPF) in Rio Grande do Norte (RN) filed a public civil action against the Union and deputy General Girão (PL-RN) for collective moral damages as a result of encouraging anti-democratic demonstrations in front of military installations in Natal . The claim for damages is R$ 5 million. The state government and the prefecture of Natal are also targets of the process. The argument is that the local authorities committed an omission by not protecting democracy and allowing the continuation of anti-democratic camps in the Potiguar capital. In the case of the Union, prosecutors argue that the commanders of the Navy, Army and Air Force released a note, in November 2022, stating that it was up to the authorities to give “immediate attention to the legitimate demands of the population”. For the MPF, the text encouraged crowds in front of military units across the country. “The issuance of the note demonstrates unconstitutional politicization of the Armed Forces and stimulated the maintenance of anti-democratic and coup acts in front of the barracks from the development of the narrative that the elections were rigged, promoting the search for the breakdown of the democratic order”, maintain the prosecutors of the Republic Victor Manoel Mariz, Emanuel De Melo Ferreira and Fernando Rocha de Andrade. In the case of General Girão, the parliamentarian “actively used his social networks, in clear abuse of freedom of expression and parliamentary immunity, to encourage conduct that violated the democratic order, including the continuity of the camp existing at the time in front of the 16th Motorized Infantry Battalion in Natal”, said the MPF, in a note. The prosecutors also asked for an injunction (provisional decision) that obliges the urgent withdrawal of content published by Girão from the social networks Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and recalled that “manifestations of hatred of democracy are not protected by freedom of expression, since they inflict a risk of real and imminent damage to democratic institutions, especially in the context of elections”, reported the MPF. The case is pending in the Federal Court of Rio Grande do Norte. Agência Brasil contacted Deputy General Girão and the Attorney General’s Office (AGU). As of the time of publication, there has been no response.

Agência Brasil