Pro-Bolsonaro Supporters Protest After Brazil Top Court Backs Fake News Investigation

Far-right supporters of Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro demonstrated in favor of the president and against the Supreme Court at Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro.

Pro-Bolsonaro demonstrators waved Brazilian flags, with one group holding a banner saying "Brazil needs a clean slate," and others calling for military intervention and the criminalization of communism.

Some banners were against the Supreme Court.

"They (Supreme Court) are attacking our president, our politicians that defend our president," said Lenita Nascimento, a 64-year-old retired teacher.

A majority of Brazil’s Supreme Court voted to move forward with a sprawling fake news investigation targeting some of President Jair Bolsonaro’s most influential supporters, possibly furthering a clash between the judiciary and the executive.

The federal probe has enraged the president as it ensnares prominent lawmakers, businesspeople and popular Internet activists who are accused of coordinating a digital smear campaign against state institutions, including the court itself. Justices said it’s the court’s constitutional right to proceed with the inquiry that’s focused on threats against its members.

Fake news arose as a major issue in Brazil during Bolsonaro’s 2018 presidential campaign, and for months, the court has been conducting a probe into alleged conspiracies to promote false information online. The court deliberations are on-going.