Facing former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s failure to surrender to Federal Police custody, the Federal Police must now take all necessary action to enforce the law.
The Brazilian Supreme Court’s decision, on Thursday, to order Lula to prison was a landmark step on the South American nation’s progress towards greater rule of law. By refusing to yield to the law, Lula has shown his true colors: absolute arrogance and disdain for his nation’s better future.
Lula’s strategy now seems clear. The former president is likely to surround himself with thousands of supporters who will resist any effort to effect his arrest. In doing so he hopes the government will back down in fear of civil unrest and that the Supreme Court will be unable to enforce its ruling. Instead, the Brazilian judiciary should escalate against him.
First off, Lula’s Federal Police protective detail (Brazil’s equivalent unit to the U.S. Secret Service) should arrest him. While the Federal Police have not yet responded to Washington Examiner request for comment on whether they plan to take this course of action, as sworn law enforcement officers it is their duty to uphold the law. But if, for whatever reason, Lula’s protective detail doesn’t take action, the Federal Police should send in their elite COT unit to effect his arrest. The equivalent of the FBI’S Hostage Rescue Team, COT has the skill and proficiency to ensure that Lula’s antics end in a prison cell.
Brazil should follow South Korea’s example here. On Friday, Seoul sentenced a former president to 24 years in prison for corruption.
And that’s the same place Lula must end up. He is a former president who has challenged the rule of law: If Brazil now yields to Lula, it will render itself a fake-democracy.
