Lula talks to The Guardian about democracy, justice and Brazil’s recent social conquests

Brazil’s former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva showed great
respect for Brazil’s democratic process, its judicial system and
knows that what poorer Brazilians have conquered in just over a decade will remain in the people’s memory, and, he hopes, in
people’s daily lives.

These were the highlights of a long interview that Lula conceded to
The Guardian’s Latin America correspondent Jonathan Watts, that was
published this Monday (4/7/2016).

“I’ve said many times that the important thing in a democracy is
a change in power,” he said. Lula was explaining why he never attempted to
change Brazil’s legislation to allow him to run indefinitely as president because
he doesn’t believe that people cannot be replaced.

Lula told Watts how this conclusion came from a life of political
activity in which he ran for office and lost three times before being elected, without ever questioning the results.

“I respected the people’s choice of the winner,” Lula said.

Watts describes Lula as tranquil with the current police and
public prosecutors’ investigations of his activities during and after
he left the presidency because, as Lula tells Watts, he knows there
is no crime and that if he stands trial people will know whether the
allegations are true or not.

Watts, nevertheless, describes Lula as a person that generates passions
and is still “the most popular politician in Brazil” as recent
polls showed him ahead of possible candidates in elections.

But Lula calls not only for equal treatment for other parties
apart from the Workers Party (PT) but also a reform of the current Brazilian political
system in which all parties need more and more money to finance
campaigns.

But ultimately, as Lula describes the current political crisis to
the British correspondent, he says how saddened he is with the
prospect that social conquests in recent years could be partially
undone but he also believes that major achievements “will not be
lost” whether he is on trial.

And that is why he believes that president Dilma Rousseff has a
chance winning the final vote in the Senate that will reinstate her
fully as president.

To read the full interview, click here .