Lula recants after saying that drug dealers are ‘victims’ of drug users: ‘I made a misplaced sentence’

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) recanted this Friday (24) for a sentence in which he compared drug dealers to victims of drug users. The comment was made during a press conference in Jakarta, Indonesia, and had negative repercussions, especially among the opposition. “I made a poorly placed sentence this Thursday and I want to say that my position is very clear against drug traffickers and organized crime,” he wrote on a social network. Lula: drug dealers would be “victims” of drug users During the press conference, the PT member spoke about fighting drugs and said that it would be “easier” for Brazil and the United States to “fight addicts”. To reinforce his position, Lula stated: “Users are responsible for traffickers, who are victims of users too.” Lula made the comment when asked about statements by United States President Donald Trump, who said a declaration of war was not necessary to kill drug traffickers. When justifying himself this Friday, the Brazilian president minimized his speech and stressed: “more than words are the actions” that his government has been carrying out. In this context, he cited the Executive’s initiatives to combat crime and Operation Hidden Carbon, which dismantled a billion-dollar criminal scheme in the fuel sector commanded by the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC). “More important than words are the actions that my government has been carrying out, such as the largest operation in history against organized crime, the referral to Congress of the Public Security PEC and the record drug seizures in the country”, he highlighted in the message. “We will remain firm in combating drug trafficking and organized crime,” he continued. 🔎 The Trump administration has been waging an offensive in the Caribbean Sea under the argument of targeting drug traffickers. This week, the American president also admitted to having authorized secret operations by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in Nicolás Maduro’s Venezuela. Lula and Trump are scheduled to meet this Sunday (26) on a parallel agenda to the Southeast Asian summit. The Brazilian president takes the meeting for granted and stated that there is no prohibited topic between the two leaders. This will be the first time that the two have officially met since the beginning of the crisis caused by the 50% tariff applied by the United States to Brazilian products. Before that, Lula and Trump only spoke on the phone and met briefly at the United Nations General Assembly in the United States in September, when Trump described having “excellent chemistry” with Lula. Lula gives an interview to journalists during a trip to Indonesia Ricardo Stuckert / PR

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