President Temer has allowed an investigation against him for corruption by the Supreme Court to go ahead. However, even as nationwide protests continue to grow, Temer has refused to step down.
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Brazil's president Michel Temer has withdrawn his objection to a corruption investigation against him, with his lawyers saying he wants to clear up the controversy as quickly as possible. At the same time, Temer warned opponents he would not go down without a fight.
"Oust me if you want. But if I step down, I would be admitting guilt," Temer said in an interview published in the Brazilian Folha de S.Paulo newspaper.
The scandal erupted last week when the Globo newspaper revealed a secret audio recording in which an executive from meat-packing giant JBS can allegedly be heard getting the president's approval for paying hush money to a politician imprisoned for corruption. Former parliamentary speaker Eduardo Cunha was a witness in a massive corruption scandal that threatened Temer's ruling coalition. Cunha had also helped orchestrate the impeachment and removal from office of former President Dilma Rousseff last year.
Confident that the recording was doctored and would not be considered as evidence, Temer's lawyer has said he would allow the court to go ahead with its corruption investigation against him.
Allowing the investigations to go ahead could cause problems for his coalition, however, as the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB) had called for a pause in the case as a condition for staying on as coalition partners.
Party officials said on Monday the PSDB would wait until whether the Supreme Court would continue to investigate Temer.
Despite widespread calls for his resignation amid the scandal, Temer refused to step aside, saying that he "didn't buy anyone's silence and that "Brazil [would] not be derailed."
smm/rt (AFP, dpa)
Why Brazil is striking
Brazil has been snarled by nationwide strikes and demonstrations against pension and labor reforms being pushed by President Michel Temer. Organizers claim the strike will be the "biggest in Brazil's history."
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Temer's reform bill
Brazilian unions called Brazil's first nationwide strike in 21 years against a tough austerity and reform bill put forward by President Michel Temer. The bill aims to reduce labor costs and erode the power of unions. Temer said he hopes it will kickstart an economy battered by a recession. Workers' Groups think the reforms go too far and question the government's legitimacy.
Image: Reuters/A.Machado
14 million unemployed
Battered by a recession, unemployment in Brazil has increased steadily over the past two years. In the first quarter of 2017, unemployment hit 13.7 percent, totaling more than 14 million people. Brazil's economy is expected to grow fractionally again this year, although that largely depends on whether Temer can advance his reform package.
Brazil's recession has dovetailed with a far-reaching corruption probe that has engulfed the country's political class. Former leftist President Dilma Rousseff (pictured) was impeached and removed from office for breaking budget rules. However, around a third of Temer's cabinet has also been implicated in what is an ever-widening investigation.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/E. Peres
General strike brings Brazil to a standstill
Union leaders said they expected Friday's strike to be the biggest in Brazil's history. Public transport networks across major cities were shut down. A number of other public bodies were also affected, including libraries, schools and even some hospitals.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/M. Schincariol
A growing risk of violence
Some protesters at Friday's demonstrations set up barricades and lit tires ablaze. Police responded with tear gas. Sao Paulo, Brazil's most populous city and financial powerhouse, was the worst affected.
