Flavio Bolsonaro flees Brazil after election loss, US says will grant visa

The media reports come a day after Supreme Court ordered Bolsonaro hand over passport as part of money laundering probe.

Flavio Bolsonaro, who lost Brazil's October 25 presidential run-off, has reportedly left the country for the US [File: AFP]

A senior US State Department official said the Trump administration will issue visas to Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro and his family, allowing them to enter the US after news outlets reported that Bolsonaro fled Brazil after losing the country’s presidential election .

The news came on Tuesday, one day after Brazil’s Supreme Court ordered Bolsonaro to turn over his passports as part of a probe into alleged money laundering. Bolsonaro has denied any wrongdoing and said on Monday that he had “never thought about leaving the country” and would stay to lead the opposition.

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Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva , who has previously accused members of the Bolsonaro family of courting US interference in Brazilian affairs for their political benefit , called the right-wing senator’s actions shameful and said he should have stayed in the country to prove his innocence.

“A person who sneaks out of their country must have something to hide,” Lula said in the capital, Brasilia, during his 81st birthday celebration, adding that Brazil is the Bolsonaro family’s “second country” while the US is their first.

“The act of leaving Brazil is shameful.”

Bolsonaro, the son of former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro, initially refused to acknowledge the election results and said he would seek their annulment. His party released a statement on Monday saying it accepted the results of the election, which the conservative candidate lost by more than 4.4 million votes.

US President Donald Trump reacted by casting doubt on the election result, telling reporters it “looked like another rigged election”.

No evidence has emerged that the vote was marred by malfeasance. While critics seized on a last-minute decision to extend polling hours, Lula’s eventual victory was commanding, and the extension was unlikely to change the outcome.

Democratic Representative Joaquin Castro said that Trump should tell the US Congress whether his administration played a role in Bolsonaro’s exit from Brazil.

“Losing an election is not grounds for asylum. Yet the Trump Administration is giving Flavio Bolsonaro safe haven in the United States. In Brazil, he is under investigation for alleged corruption, money laundering and currency evasion, and was ordered to surrender his passports,” Castro said in a social media post.

“The Trump Administration owes Congress answers on its role helping Bolsonaro flee Brazil in contravention of Brazilian law.”

Bolsonaro’s younger brother, Eduardo, who lives in the US and was convicted in absentia in June for illegally lobbying the Trump administration, said during a podcast interview earlier this month that Flavio should leave Brazil if he were to lose the race.

“If my brother does not win, I’m in favour that he would leave the country,” he told podcaster Steven Crowder.

媒体报道的起因是最高法院下令博索纳罗交出护照，作为洗钱调查的一部分。

据报道，在10月25日巴西总统决选中落败的弗拉维奥·博索纳罗已经离开巴西前往美国。[图片来源：法新社]

美国国务院一位高级官员表示，特朗普政府将向巴西参议员弗拉维奥·博索纳罗及其家人发放签证，允许他们进入美国。此前有新闻媒体报道称，博索纳罗在巴西总统选举中落败后逃离了巴西。

周二，巴西最高法院下令博索纳罗交出护照，作为对其涉嫌洗钱调查的一部分。此前一天，这一消息传出。博索纳罗否认有任何不当行为，并于周一表示，他“从未想过离开巴西”，将继续领导反对派。

列表 1/3：弗拉维奥·博索纳罗在巴西大选结果后“不会放弃”

问题 2（共 3 题）：卢拉在巴西总统选举首轮落败后，是如何击败博索纳罗的？

巴西雷亚尔在卢拉连任后暴跌（共3条，此为第3条）

巴西总统路易斯·伊纳西奥·卢拉·达席尔瓦此前曾指责博索纳罗家族成员为了政治利益而拉拢美国干预巴西事务，他称这位右翼参议员的行为可耻，并表示他应该留在巴西证明自己的清白。

卢拉在首都巴西利亚庆祝自己 81 岁生日时说：“偷偷溜出自己国家的人肯定有什么不可告人的秘密。”他还补充说，巴西是博索纳罗家族的“第二故乡”，而美国是他们的第一故乡。

“离开巴西的行为是可耻的。”

博索纳罗是前右翼总统雅伊尔·博索纳罗之子，他最初拒绝承认选举结果，并表示将寻求宣布选举无效。他的政党周一发表声明称，接受选举结果，这位保守派候选人在此次选举中以超过440万张选票的差距落败。

美国总统唐纳德·特朗普对此表示质疑，并告诉记者，这“看起来像是又一次被操纵的选举”。

目前尚无证据表明此次投票存在舞弊行为。尽管批评人士抓住最后一刻延长投票时间的决定大做文章，但卢拉最终的胜利优势明显，延长投票时间不太可能改变选举结果。

民主党众议员华金·卡斯特罗表示，特朗普应该向美国国会说明，他的政府是否在博索纳罗离开巴西一事中扮演了某种角色。

“选举失败并非获得庇护的理由。然而，特朗普政府却给予弗拉维奥·博索纳罗在美国的庇护。在巴西，他正因涉嫌腐败、洗钱和逃税而接受调查，并被勒令交出护照，”卡斯特罗在社交媒体上发帖说道。

“特朗普政府有义务向国会解释其在帮助博索纳罗违反巴西法律逃离巴西一事中所扮演的角色。”

博索纳罗的弟弟爱德华多居住在美国，他于今年6月因非法游说特朗普政府而被缺席定罪。本月初，爱德华多在一次播客采访中表示，如果弗拉维奥输掉选举，他应该离开巴西。

“如果我哥哥没赢，我赞成他离开这个国家，”他告诉播客主持人史蒂文·克劳德。