Today (February 14) we filed a new petition in the writ of Habeas Corpus No. 34,070/DF and in the records of Habeas Corpus No. 34,071, which are pending before the Federal Supreme Court (STF), requesting that the appeals we lodged in favor of former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva are brought to judgment before that Court in order to repair a historical damage - consistent with Justice Gilmar Mendes’s decision of barring Lula from assuming the position of Minister of State for which he had been appointed by former President Rousseff.

This request was motivated by the decision, also issued on this date, by Justice Celso de Mello, which did not impose any obstacle to the appointment of Mr. Wellington Moreira Franco, on the same grounds we presented before the STF to reverse the decision rendered against Lula. That is, in the exact same situation, different criteria were used.

Lula fulfilled all the requirements set forth in article 87 of the Federal Constitution for the position of Minister of State, in addition to being in full exercise of his political rights. He was not being accused and was not a Defendant in a proceeding at that time. Nothing justifies the barring, which had serious effects not only on Lula’s honor and image, but also on the country’s democracy.

The review of the decision rendered by Justice Gilmar Mendes in relation to Lula is necessary so that a valid and legitimate legal act, that was the appointment of Lula to the position of Minister of State, doesn’t remain stained before history.