by Boaz Bismuth
As a sovereign state, Israel is the only one that can decide its capital, he says • I love the Israeli people and Israel, he declares.
Brazil's President-elect Jair Bolsonaro waves after voting in the
runoff election in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday|
Photo: AP
Until a few weeks
ago, Jair Bolsonaro, now the president-elect of Brazil, was a
little-known legislator. No one thought he would go on to become the
leader of the country. But on Wednesday, a week after he astonished
everyone by winning the presidential election in Brazil – the largest
democracy in Latin America – Bolsonaro chose Israel Hayom for what
appears to be his first interview with the foreign media, and made it
clear that his support for Israel and promises about Jerusalem were not
just an election gimmick.
This is part of Bolsonaro's desire to lead
Brazil on a new path and free his country of the policies that he
believes to be outdated – policies instated by the Left, which has been
in control almost continuously since the early 2000s.
Bolsonaro is under attack for his blunt,
politically incorrect style, but that's exactly what prompted the
Brazilian masses to put their trust in him as their new leader. They
wanted a leader that would make them proud of their country, which is
currently plagued with violence and economic distress.
Many believe, incorrectly, that Bolsonaro
is an extreme right-wing nationalist. But he isn't bothered by the
misperceptions and says that the claims that he will end democracy say
more about his opponents than they do about him.
Israel Hayom Editor-in-Chief Boaz Bismuth spoke to Bolsonaro by telephone, with the help of an interpreter.
Q: Did you know that your name, Jair, means ''bringing light" in Hebrew?
"Yes, I was informed not long ago. I have
the moral compass of a man who intends to do his best for his country
and intends to tighten relations with other countries that think the
same way we do and champion democratic elections, liberty and respect
for others.
"I was in Israel two years ago and I intend
to return. The Israeli ambassador to Brazil [Yossi Shelly] visited me
twice this week, and I've always had excellent relations with him. I'm
very happy that I'm treated so warmly and that the official envoy of the
State of Israel treats me this way, and it is truly mutual. I love the
Israeli people and Israel. You can depend on the fact that I will
promote closeness and fruitful cooperation between us starting in 2019."
Q: You've said several times that
you intend to relocate the Brazilian Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to
Jerusalem. Will you? And do you intend to change the status of the
Palestinian Embassy in Brasília?
"Israel is a sovereign state. If you decide
on your capital city, we will act in accordance. When I was asked
during the campaign if I'll do it [relocate the embassy] when I was
president, I said yes, and that you're the ones who decide on the
capital of Israel, not other people.
"As for the Palestinian Embassy, it was
built too close to the presidential palace. … No embassy can be so close
to the presidential palace, so we intend to move it. There's no other
way, in my opinion. Other than that, Palestine first needs to be a state
to have the right to an embassy."
Q: Can Israel expect fairer, more
supportive votes from Brazil in international forums, such as the U.N.,
on matters involving Israel?
"You can count on having our vote in the
U.N. I know that often the vote is almost symbolic, but it helps to
define the position a country intends to take. Rest assured that you can
depend on our vote in the U.N. on almost all the issues having to do
with Israel."
Q: To what do you attribute your electoral victory, and what is your administration's general plan?
"The victory is down to a number of things –
the weariness of politicians who made politics a profession here in
Brazil; corruption; contempt for family values; and the previous
governments' very close ties to socialism and communism, and of course,
to the fact that we flew the flag of truth."
Q: Were you surprised by the
popular support, the results, and your [party's] increased
representation in the National Congress?
"Our party had one member in parliament and
now we have 52, despite the fact that we don't get any television
coverage or [government] funds. The campaign relied heavily on social
media and now we're 10% of the parliament and we've managed to get the
support of other parties as well as independent lawmakers, so governing
isn't a problem.
"I wasn't surprised, because I started
crisscrossing Brazil four years ago. Brazil is very large. Israel is
smaller than our smallest state [Sergipe], so imagine if you were 26
times bigger. Over the course of four years, we managed to get to every
part of Brazil. By speaking the truth, we gained the sympathy and trust
of the Brazilian electorate, and even though I was in the hospital for
23 days and at home for another 20 and couldn't go out [following an
attempt on his life], we won by a large margin of votes."
Q: Are you proud of the long political road you've traversed, and will the assassination attempt affect your presidency?
"For 28 years I've been part of a
parliament that receives no support from the public. It is a parliament
that has turned its back on the people long ago. But the fact is that
I'm a survivor of that parliament. Before I entered politics, I was in
the Brazilian army for 17 years, and as far as I know in Israel almost
everyone has military experience. … [In the military,] one experiences
nationalism. It shapes your values and principles – gives you
responsibility, patriotism, sacrifice and meaning. All of this molds
your personality."
Q: Why do you think people are saying that you pose a threat to democracy?
"They can't go after me for being corrupt.
Meanwhile, their government [the previous left-wing government] operated
in a number of ways – controlling the public with the media; rewriting
the constitution; nationalizing assets, which lowered the value of
private property; submitting to dictatorships all over the world. That's
what the Left does, as it walks around carrying Lenin's works on
communism under its arm. The Left always blames others for the very
things it does itself. But the Brazilian population, which has been
liberated from the traditional media, trusted my word and my past."
Boaz Bismuth
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/2018/11/01/president-elect-of-brazil-promises-israel-can-count-on-our-vote/
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