Guernsey election 2025: International observers mission arrives
A team of international election observers has arrived in Guernsey ahead of the island's General Election on 18 June. It marks the first in-person, island-wide election observation mission in Guernsey's history.Organised by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association British Islands and Mediterranean Region (CPA), the mission included eight independent observers, among them parliamentarians from Saint Lucia, Scotland, and Montserrat, as well as election experts and CPA UK staff.The observers will meet election officials, candidates, and community groups in the lead-up to polling day, said the CPA.
Guernsey election 2025: What you need to know
On election day, they will visit all polling stations multiple times to assess the process against international standards and local laws, it said.This is the CPA's second mission to Guernsey, following a virtual observation in 2020 due to Covid-19. A preliminary statement of findings will be released on 20 June, with a full report to follow in August.
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The Guardian
3 hours ago
- The Guardian
Bolsonaro denies coup plot but admits discussing ‘alternative ways' to remain president
Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro has denied masterminding a far-right coup plot at his trial in the supreme court, but he admitted to taking part in meetings to discuss 'alternative ways' of staying in power after his defeat in the 2022 election. In just over two hours of questioning, the 70-year-old said that after the electoral court confirmed Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's election victory, 'we studied other alternatives within the constitution.' Those options included the deployment of military forces and suspension of some civil liberties, Bolsonaro said, but he argued that such discussions could not be considered an attempted coup. 'A coup is something abominable. A coup may even be easy to start. The day after is simply unpredictable and harmful to everyone. Brazil could not go through something like that, and such a hypothesis was never even considered during my government,' he said. Bolsonaro confirmed his allies had considered various options, including the declaration of a state of siege, but did not pursue them because 'there was no climate for it, no opportunity; we didn't even have a minimally solid base to do anything.' The former chiefs of the air force and the army had previously told police that they opposed Bolsonaro's plans during those meetings, although they said the former navy commander pledged to back the rightwing autocrat. With a hoarse voice, the far-right leader used the live broadcast of his questioning to turn much of the hearing into a political platform, defending his 2019-2023 administration and repeatedly criticising Lula's third term. There had been some expectation over his face-off with the case's lead judge, justice Alexandre de Moraes – the former head of the electoral court, whom Bolsonaro has previously called a 'jerk' and a 'scoundrel'. But Bolsonaro apologised to Moraes and two other justices for saying in a meeting – a recording of which was submitted as evidence – that they had allegedly received between $30m and $50m each to rig the election. 'It was a vent, rhetoric I used,' he said. 'So, I apologise. I had no intention of accusing you of any misconduct'. Though he is barred from running for office by an electoral court ruling in a separate case – for spreading lies and attacking the voting system – Bolsonaro joked with Moraes, saying: 'I'd like to invite you to be my running mate in 2026.' Smiling, the justice replied: 'I'll pass.' Bolsonaro was the sixth defendant to be questioned since the trial began on Monday of the eight men considered the 'nucleus' of the attempted coup. The accused include four former Bolsonaro ministers – three of them army generals; the ex-commander of the navy; and the ex-president's former right-hand man, Lt Col Mauro Cid. It is the first time that high-ranking military officers have ever faced trial over an attempted coup d'état in Brazil, a country that endured a bloody dictatorship from 1964 to 1985. Journalist and political analyst Miriam Leitão wrote in her column in O Globo that 'what was most striking … was the casual atmosphere in which a coup d'état was discussed within the Bolsonaro government. 'Everyone knew about it – there were several conversations, meetings in function rooms, inside the presidential palace and at the top of the military hierarchy,' she wrote. The first to testify was Bolsonaro's former aide-de-camp, Lt Col Mauro Cid, who signed a plea bargain and whose testimony, alongside evidence gathered by the federal police, forms the basis for the prosecution's case. He reaffirmed that Bolsonaro edited a draft decree that provided for the arrest of several authorities, including members of Congress and supreme court justices, and the creation of a commission to organise new elections. 'He [Bolsonaro] shortened the document, removing the authorities' arrests. Only you would be imprisoned,' Lt Col Cid told Moraes. He also said that his former boss attempted unsuccessfully to find some kind of 'fraud' in the electronic voting system, hoping to 'convince the armed forces to do something'. Once the defendants' testimony concludes, the prosecution and defence will have five days to request further inquiries to gather new evidence, which the rapporteur, Moraes, may accept or reject. After that come the final arguments and, ultimately, the trial verdict, which is expected in the second half of the year.
Reuters
3 hours ago
- Reuters
Bolsonaro denies orchestrating Brazil coup in Supreme Court testimony
BRASILIA, June 10 (Reuters) - Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro denied that he led an attempt to overthrow the government after losing the 2022 election during his trial before the country's Supreme Court on Tuesday, but acknowledged taking part in meetings aimed at reversing the outcome. Bolsonaro said he and senior aides discussed alternatives to accepting the electoral results, including the possibility of deploying military forces and suspending some civil liberties, but he said those proposals were soon dropped. "The feeling was that there was nothing else we could do. We had to swallow the election results," the ex-president said. "I never acted against the Constitution," Bolsonaro added, holding a copy of the country's 1988 charter that re-established democracy after two decades of military rule. In March, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case against Bolsonaro and seven other people, including several military officers, who were charged with plotting a coup to stop Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from taking office in January 2023. The charges stem from a two-year police investigation into the election-denying movement that culminated in riots by Bolsonaro supporters in the capital in early 2023, a week after Lula took office. Bolsonaro, who was the sixth defendant to testify in the case, spent several minutes of his two hours of testimony defending his administration's achievements and his criticism of the country's electoral system. Dozens of witnesses were previously heard by the court, an indication that the case is moving swiftly and could be concluded by the end of the year, avoiding overlap with campaigning for the 2026 presidential election. Bolsonaro has insisted he will run in that campaign, despite an electoral court decision barring him from seeking public office until 2030. On Monday, Bolsonaro attended the trial to watch testimony from Mauro Cid, his former aide turned whistleblower, and then shook his hand. Cid told the court that the former president reviewed a draft decree that was central to the coup plot and made changes, while keeping a section that ordered the arrest of Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who is now overseeing the case against Bolsonaro and his allies. On Tuesday, the former president said he only briefly saw the draft decree and never edited it. He also apologized for making unfounded corruption allegations about Supreme Court justices. "Forgive me," he told Moraes. A final ruling on Bolsonaro's case is expected by October.
BreakingNews.ie
5 hours ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Bolsonaro appears before Brazil's Supreme Court over alleged coup plan
Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro denied participation in an alleged plot to remain in power and overturn the 2022 election result as he gave evidence on Tuesday for the first time before the Supreme Court over the charges. Bolsonaro and seven close allies were being questioned by a panel of top judges as part of a trial over allegations they devised a multistep scheme to keep Bolsonaro in office despite his defeat to current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Advertisement 'There was never any talk of a coup. A coup is an abominable thing … Brazil couldn't go through an experience like that. And there was never even the possibility of a coup in my government,' Bolsonaro said. The defendants are standing trial on five counts: attempting to stage a coup, involvement in an armed criminal organisation, attempted violent abolition of the democratic rule of law, aggravated damage and deterioration of listed heritage. Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes hears evidence from Brazil's former president Jair Bolsaro (Eraldo Peres/AP) A coup conviction carries a sentence of up to 12 years. When combined with the other charges, the accused could be sentenced to decades behind bars. The far-right politician entered the witness box just after 2.30pm local time. When asked by Justice Alexandre de Moraes at the beginning of questioning whether the accusation was true, Bolsonaro said no. Advertisement 'The accusation does not hold, Your Excellency,' Bolsonaro said. The former president has repeatedly denied the allegations and said he is the target of political persecution. The eight defendants are accused of making up the plan's core group. Justices are also questioning Bolsonaro's former running mate and defence minister Walter Braga Netto, former ministers Anderson Torres and Augusto Heleno and ex aide-de-camp Mauro Cid, among others. Judges will hear from 26 other defendants at a later date. The court has already heard from dozens of witnesses in hearings that began in mid-May. Cid, who has signed a plea bargain with the federal police, told the court on Monday that Bolsonaro read and edited a document that aimed at cancelling the election result. Advertisement Cid also said that Bolsonaro refused to interfere regarding camps by supporters that were set up in front of army facilities calling for a military intervention after the then-president lost the election. Many of those followers were later part of the January 8 2023 riot, when the Supreme Court, Congress and presidential palace in Brasilia, the capital, were ransacked. Police say their uprising — which came after Lula was sworn in — was an attempt to force military intervention and oust the new president. Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet alleges the riot was one part of a sprawling, antidemocratic scheme to overturn the election result. Part of that plot allegedly included a plan to kill Lula and Justice Alexandre de Moraes. The plan did not go ahead at the last minute because the accused failed to get the army's commander on board, according to Mr Gonet. Advertisement Bolsonaro, a former military officer who was known to express nostalgia for the country's past dictatorship, openly defied Brazil's judicial system during his 2019-2022 term in office. He has already been banned by Brazil's top electoral court from running in elections until 2030 over abuse of power while in office and casting unfounded doubts on the country's electronic voting system. Thiago Bottino, a law professor at the Getulio Vargas Foundation, a think tank and university, called the trial historic. 'It's the first time we see people accused of an attempted coup are being subjected to a criminal trial, with the guarantees of due criminal process – being able to defend themselves but answering for these accusations,' he said. Advertisement
