00:00And we go to Brazil.
00:01The government and several institutions continue to denounce dieted attempts at foreign interference
00:06in the upcoming elections of October 4th.
00:09For more on how these actions shaped the pre-election landscape, we welcome our special envoy, Belen
00:15de los Santos.
00:16Hello, Bel.
00:17What do you have for us at this hour?
00:19Hello, Ale.
00:20How are you?
00:21Exactly.
00:21We are in the final days.
00:23Everything counts, every relevant piece of information that comes up and that can shift
00:29both from one side to the other.
00:31You know that we've been talking about this is that it is from the polls, expectedly a
00:36very close race, particularly taking into consideration that in order to win in this first election
00:43day, the either candidates, we're talking about President Lula de Silva from the Workers'
00:49Party and Flavio Bolsonaro from the extreme-right Bolsonaro's party.
00:54Liberal parties, they would need to go above and beyond 50% of the votes in order to win
01:00this first term.
01:01If not, they were heading into a run-up on October 25th.
01:06And the polls are showing that they are very close in those numbers, so probably we will
01:12be seeing an extended campaign until that run-up date.
01:16And while we do that and while we see this last few days coming up, everything that comes
01:22to stop every policy, every discussion may swift the undecided voters or those who maybe
01:29have decided their option but are not completely sure.
01:33And some last-minute things could change the votes.
01:36That is what analysts and polls are saying that is going to, in the end, define the election.
01:42Those undecided, those who are not still sure and the percentage of voters who still switch
01:50sides.
01:51On that topic, we have been using these days to really try to feel the mood of the people
01:57here in Rio de Janeiro, understanding how some of the most relevant topics that have been in
02:02discussion in the media.
02:04How are they affecting the population?
02:05We have been talking, for example, as you were just mentioning, about the repercussion,
02:10the internal repercussion of the insistence on the behalf of the United States in terms
02:17of having interference in the electoral process.
02:21We covered the fact that just last week there were two letters, not just one, but two letters
02:28from U.S. congressmen and women addressing the Secretary of State and showing evidence
02:33of how this has been a long-standing campaign in order to undermine the Brazilian electoral
02:38process and how people have been reacting to that.
02:42We have just been out on the streets also talking to people about the recent prohibition
02:47of the bets or the betting online agencies that have to do with online gambling and that
02:55have been prohibited by President Lula da Silva in a measure that is in favor of public health
03:02and it was very well received.
03:05We will be talking to different people and most of them agreed that there was an important
03:09measure because it was protecting household income in favor and against the profits of
03:18big businesses.
03:19And that was some of the things that specialists are also pointing could be decisive in the
03:25last few days.
03:27Today, Thursday is the last day for the special TV free space for propaganda.
03:34So we are entering the final days and actually we are going to be able to see both candidates
03:40on TV today.
03:41Clavio Bolsonaro will take part on a debate that is going to be held in Global TV.
03:48President Lula da Silva will not be participating in that debate but will be on a past flow.
03:55He has confirmed his appearance there.
03:57So we will be hearing from both main candidates in this electoral race tonight, Thursday.
04:04And that today is the final day for propaganda.
04:08I wanted to ask you how are political campaigns wrapping up in this final stretch before general
04:14elections?
04:16Exactly.
04:17Today is the final day for the official time slot allocated for the TV campaigns in different
04:23public media.
04:25But this does not mean that the campaigns are closing.
04:28Actually, the different gatherings are still underway.
04:30There is one very close to where we are right now next to the Uruguayana market here in
04:36downtown Rio de Janeiro.
04:38In this case, in favor of Lula da Silva and his candidacy.
04:43And the different activities will continue.
04:46So President Lula will be here in Rio de Janeiro tomorrow morning for a gathering that is going
04:52to rally up people here in one of the most important cities and electoral districts in the
04:58country.
04:59We were saying it's the third greatest electoral district after Sao Paulo and Minas
05:04Gerais.
05:04So he will be here.
05:05And Saturday will be the most important day with the closing of the campaign.
05:11Both candidates will be probably in Sao Paulo.
05:14Lula has one activity scheduled in Sao Paulo city that is still sending some authorization,
05:19but it's still on.
05:22Well, Flávio Bolsonaro is expected to have a roundabout in Sao Paulo as well.
05:27Not particularly in the city, but in the surrounding.
05:30So very important main acting campaign just in the close-up before Sunday.
05:36Ale, before I go, I wanted to leave you with this package and this information that we
05:44have people thinking now that they know and they have seen this letters from congressmen
05:50and women in the U.S. stating the evidence of the U.S. administration having some sort
05:55of interference in the electoral process.
05:58Let's see.
06:05Tariffs, sanctions and direct interference in support of the Bolsonaro's candidate.
06:10According to U.S. congress members, these are some of the ways that the Trump administration
06:15is carrying out a campaign to destabilize the elections in Brazil.
06:21Even though today we are a republic, Brazil has never ceased to be a colonized country.
06:33And this interference is not new.
06:37It has always existed, of course, but today it is more evident.
06:42The attack on our sovereignty is very clear and very concerning.
06:47On the streets of Rio de Janeiro, the debate over sovereignty is not an abstract concept,
06:52but a real fear that a greater U.S. presence could mean the arrival of military bases or
06:57the loss of ability to make decisions about national policies.
07:03Brazil is a very large country, as you can see.
07:06In terms of territory, it is too large to fit into other countries' backyards.
07:10So I believe that, in a much more practical way, if we do not defend our sovereignty today,
07:14tomorrow we may no longer be able to make this move.
07:17Unfortunately, there will already be military bases from other countries within our territory,
07:21and we will no longer have this autonomy.
07:27It means not letting another country tell us what we have to do, for example, with the Amazon,
07:32or what policies we have to implement regarding the factions in the favelas.
07:37That is for us to deal with.
07:39The policies that are passed here are ours to make.
07:43Do they work? Do they not work?
07:45We have to discuss that internally, not externally.
07:48Back in May, the United States designated the criminal organizations Comando Bermelio and PCC
07:54as foreign terrorist organizations.
07:57Bolsonarists called for and welcomed the move.
08:00Others fear it could be a pretext to justify greater intervention.
08:05The issue of security itself, because they will need some argument to justify a direct intervention,
08:10and the issue of drug trafficking is being used as a scapegoat,
08:14even though we know that drugs and weapons come from outside the border.
08:17They are not manufactured here.
08:19Donald Trump does not hide his direct support for far-right candidate Flavio Bolsonaro.
08:24For many, this puts the entire democratic system at risk.
08:30If the decision is not the one the United States wants,
08:35I fear that this could generate a conflict beyond the political sphere.
08:43This is the main concern with this interference by the United States in our politics.
08:50Just day before the general election, Brazil is not only deciding on its own development model,
08:55what is also at stake is the advance of the United States in the region.
09:00I want you to understand that defending sovereignty means defending what it means to be truly Brazilian.
09:04Defending sovereignty means defending what is happening in our region
09:07and making sure that we can take care of everything that is happening in our region.
09:11Francisco Zamudio, Belen de los Santos, for Chalasur English, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
