False: The video circulating on the Kwai platform showing, in edited form, the speech in which Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), former president and candidate for the Presidency of the Republic, allegedly curses supporters is false. In the original video, recorded in an area occupied by the Homeless Workers Movement (MTST), in October 2017, Lula says the opposite of what the manipulated version suggests and says that there are no drug dealers, vagrants and bandits there.
Investigated Content: post with fake content on Kwai shows Lula calling supporters “bums”, “drug dealers” and “bandits”. After the PT’s speech, another video is inserted into the montage, in which state deputy Conte Lopes (PL-SP) states that the former president “does not say anything at all”.
where it was published: Kwai, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.
Completion of Proof: It’s a fake video on Kwai that shows Lula calling supporters “tramps”; “traffickers” and “bandits”. The recording is edited to suppress the term “no” before the words. The post also has another video inserted, in which deputy Conte Lopes criticizes the PT.
During an occupation in São Bernardo do Campo (SP), organized by the MTST, the former president addressed the people present in October 2017. original video, Lula says: “The first thing is that they have to know that there are no bums here. There are no dealers here. There are no thieves here.”
On the 3rd of September, the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) ordered social networks to remove publications from the air containing the same video with edited speeches by Lula, under the justification of manipulation of the former president’s speech in order to reach the integrity of the electoral process.
Comprova considers false any content invented or edited to change its original meaning and deliberately released to spread a falsehood.
Scope of publication: As of September 15, the post on Kwai had 273 likes, 132 comments, 415 shares and 11,200 views. The TSE’s decision to remove the same video cites publications on other social networks. As of September 1, a Twitter post had over 18,000 views. Another post had over 1.1 million views on TikTok. On Facebook, it has been viewed more than 130,000 times.
What the author of the publication says: Comprova contacted the author of the publication through the messaging feature on Kwai. The profile, identified as Aladir Leite Albuquerque, did not respond as of the publication of this check. aladir went candidate in several elections and ran for the Senate in 2018 in Mato Grosso for the PPL. He didn’t get elected.
How do we check: In a Google search for the phrase “Lula curses supporters”, we identified other checks on the same video (AFP, Reuters, Estadão, wow) and decision of the TSE in relation to the video. Through a reverse image search, we verified that the final scenes are by Conte Lopes, state deputy for São Paulo and candidate for reelection, in a podcast shared on his YouTube channel. We also contacted the author of the publication on Kwai.
MTST speech
As verified by Comprova, in reports on the internet (AFP) and in MTST’s own websiteLula went to the People Without Fear occupation, organized by the Homeless Workers Movement, on October 21, 2017. He addressed a crowd in São Bernardo do Campo.
Video of the speech can be viewed on the Mídia Ninja channel on YouTube. The content shows, from 1:19:54, the moment of Lula’s speech that was manipulated in the edition to generate a meaning contrary to what he actually said.
“It’s important that they know who you are. The first thing is that they have to know that there are no bums here. There are no dealers here. There are no bandits here. And much less thief. Here there are men, women, mothers and fathers, who are certainly still working or have already worked and been sent away. And that they don’t want trouble,” Lula said.
TSE decision
On the 3rd of September of this year, the Minister of the TSE Paulo de Tarso Vieira Sanseverino ordered social networks to remove publications from the air containing the same video checked by Comprova, with edited speeches by former President Lula.
The decision covered platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. At the time, Kwai was not mentioned as one of the social networks on which the content was published. The minister ordered the suspension of publication of the material within 24 hours, under penalty of a fine of R$ 10,000. The court partially granted the request of the federation that supports the PT candidate for the presidency, the Brasil da Esperança Coalition, formed by the PT, PV, PCdoB, PSOL, REDE, PSB, Solidariedade, Avante, Agir and Pros parties.
“It is inferred, therefore, that the allegations that the publications contested in the initial were, in fact, manipulated and edited in order to change the meaning of the candidate’s speech and the truth about the facts and, with this, have repercussions and interfere negatively and irregularly in the election, which must be repressed by the Electoral Justice”, says an excerpt from the minister’s decision.
about the video
Comprova found that the video verified here presents a montage with two parts. In the first, with the edited speeches of former president Lula; and, in the second, with a 9-second excerpt from another video published on Conte Lopes’ YouTube page.
In this second part, based on the statement about the ex-president, “he doesn’t say anything at all”, it is understood that the deputy is referring to the manipulated speeches of the first part of the video, which distort the meaning of Lula’s statements. In reality, Conte Lopes’ allegations are related to another matter.
They are copied from a video in which Lula appears criticizing Bolsonaro for having granted grace to former federal deputy Daniel Silveira, sentenced by the Federal Supreme Court (STF) to 8 years and 9 months in closed regime. After seeing the ex-president’s speeches on the subject, Conte Lopes reacts by saying that the PT is “expiring” and that “he doesn’t say anything about anything”.
Who is Conte Lopes?
The politician identified in the video, who has the lines saying that Lula “doesn’t say things with things”, is Roberval Conte Lopes Lima (PL), better known as Captain Conte Lopes. According to site official of the Legislative Assembly of São Paulo (ALESP), he was elected in 2018 for the fifth consecutive term with around 207 thousand votes.
In 1998, he was the second most voted deputy in the state. He served as a member of the Parliamentary Commissions of Inquiry (CPIs) on Organized Crime, in 1997, and on Drug Trafficking, in 1999. In 2001, he was chosen leader of the PPB (today PP) in Alesp and a member of the CPI of the Prison System. In March 2003, he was reappointed to the leadership of the party. Currently, affiliated with the Liberal Party, he is a candidate for state deputy in the 2022 elections.
why do we investigate: Comprova checks suspicious content that has gone viral on social media about the covid-19 pandemic, public policies of the federal government and presidential elections. In this verification, the edited content induces the voter to misunderstand what the candidate Lula said five years ago. Disinformation material like this hinders the electoral process, as it deceives the population, who must make their choice based on true and reliable data.
Other checks on the topic: The same content has already been checked on other occasions by vehicles such as AFP, Reuters, Estadão and wow.
Also involving the candidate Lula, Comprova recently carried out some checks. One of them was about video manipulated to insert offense to Lula in speech by supporter in Pernambuco. In another check, it was concluded that Lula did not say that he would establish a dictatorship in Brazil in an interview with Chinese channel. Also recently, Comprova checked Fake video that made a montage of Lula declaring vote for Bolsonaro.
Investigated by: Norte de Notícias portal, Alma Preta and Metrópoles; Investigated by: GaúchaZH, Imirante.com, Plural Curitiba, O Dia, Piauí, A Gazeta, CBN Cuiabá and Grupo Sinos
Source: CNN Brasil
