Brazilian Workers Plan May Day Rallies to Defend Democracy

Brazilian workers are planning May Day rallies to defend democracy against what is being cast as an attempted parliamentary coup against President Dilma Rousseff, a move that comes as representatives of from both sides of Brazil’s political divide make their case for or against impeachment on Thursday.

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A special senate committee is charged with reviewing the request to see the president removed from office. It will hear from complainants on Thursday, defendants on Friday, and will continue next week with presentations from experts invited by both sides of the pro- and anti-impeachment rift.

Set up earlier this week, the 21-member senate committee has 10 working days to debate the impeachment bid and vote on the issue. If it wins with a simple majority, the question will then pass to the senate at large for another vote.

The committee is headed by a representative of the PMDB, the party of Vice President Michel Temer that broke with Rousseff’s ruling Workers’ Party, or PT, last month in a move that locked in support for the impeachment effort headed by PMDB lower house speaker Eduardo Cunha.

Rousseff has argued that the impeachment bid lacks the legal basis required by the constitution and is an attempt to shield Cunha and other corrupt lawmakers from facing charges while carrying out a conservative power grab after over a decade of progressive PT governments.

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Meanwhile, May Day marches in Brazil are slated to focus not only on workers rights, but also the “parliamentary coup” of the impeachment process, that many social movements say threatens to undermine democracy and roll back progressive gains made under the PT.

Some labor leaders have also warned that the impeachment but is not only a “coup” against Rousseff, but also against the working class, Prensa Libre reported.

The Unified Workers’ Central union, Brazil’s main national labor union, has called for mobilizations on May Day under the banner: “Brazil: Democracy and Rights." It aims to bring together social movements, workers, students, women’s groups, anti-racism movements and LGBT rights advocates for marches to defend labor rights and democracy.

The senate is expected to reach a decision mid-May about whether to move forward with the impeachment process. If approved, Rousseff will be suspended from office, replaced by Vice President Temer, for a probe to be conducted.