Temer Government Tells Diplomats to Defend Ouster of Rousseff

Brazil's interim President Michel Temer (R) and his Foreign Minister Jose Serra attend a credentials presentation ceremony of several new diplomats, at Planalto Palace in Brasilia. | Photo: Reuters

Telesur

The foreign minister said the country's diplomats need to have a united front against attempts to delegitimize the Senate's impeachment process.

Brazil's new foreign minister, Jose Serra, has ordered diplomats to rebut any government, media or international organization that criticizes the impeachment of suspended President Dilma Rousseff, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters.

The nine-page document cited a dozen examples of censure of the impeachment process that removed Rousseff from office this month made by governments and other entities to which diplomats needed to respond in defense of Brazil's political process.

"The press, academics and members of civil society and also leaders of international organizations and government representatives have manifested frequently in improper and ill-informed ways about Brazil's domestic politics," the memo said.

It singled out recent criticism from Ernesto Samper, secretary general of the Union of South American Nations, Luis Almagro, secretary general of the Organization of American States, as well as the governments of Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Cuba and El Salvador.

It said Brazil's political process should be actively defended by the diplomatic corps.