It has been a year since a pro-gun, anti-indigenous far-right former army captain took power in Brazil and began sending shockwaves through the country’s government and society.

In those 12 months, Jair Bolsonaro – who is openly homophobic and allied to Brazil’s hardline religious right – has declared war on film-makers, journalists and the environment; put a conspiracy theorist in charge of the foreign service; and greenlit a new era of police repression and rainforest destruction.

Here, six prominent Brazilian voices from the arts, media, diplomacy and the Amazon offer their thoughts on Bolsonaro’s dramatic first year as president.

Djamila Ribeiro, feminist philosopher, publisher and activist

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“It has been such a tough year – above all when it comes to public security. We feel really afraid of the intensifying repression of the black population and the increasing militarisation of the favelas. The number of black people being murdered in poor communities has increased, as has the number of indigenous leaders being killed.

“But it’s important to remember how many people have resisted and how many [resistance] movements exist.

“If there’s a positive side to this government, it’s that issues of race and gender have never been talked about so much. This is now a mainstream debate in a country like Brazil – a country founded on the myth of racial democracy that denied the existence of racism for so long. This debate already existed. But now people are discussing and speaking out about these issues like never before.

“Bolsonaro has thrown wide open things that social movements have been talking about for centuries and people are starting to wake up. In 2020, the struggle goes on.”

Patrícia Campos Mello – award-winning journalist from Brazil’s Folha de São Paulo newspaper

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“This year confirmed our worst fears about the Bolsonaro government’s relationship with the press. We’ve seen it take an increasingly hostile stance, not just towards journalists but also critical and independent media outlets.

“There hadn’t been any kind of censorship since the end of the military dictatorship [in 1985] – and now we’ve started to see a gradual erosion of freedom of expression. The other day I was talking to Nicaraguan and Venezuelan colleagues and they told me: ‘Four years ago, we were going through exactly what you’re going through. This is how it begins.’

“Every time you write a critical piece, you become a target for Bolsonaro supporters. I’d never been a target before – even when covering conflicts. I didn’t even feel like a target in Syria. But here, it’s personal.

“The aggressive messages and the fake news never stop. This is our new normal – especially for female journalists. I’ve become used to being called a whore. Each time I’m about to publish an article that’s critical of the government, I prepare myself because I know the next day will be hell.”

Celso Amorim – former foreign minister, 2003-10

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“The last time I felt ashamed of Brazil was in the late 1960s.

“I was going up the escalators near the London School of Economics and I opened a magazine and it had a story about a Brazilian student who had been killed and tortured by the dictatorship. I had the impression everyone on the underground was looking at me.

“Now, again, I feel ashamed – for many reasons, but especially by what is being done in foreign policy. In 50 years I’ve never seen anything like what is happening in Brazilian diplomacy today. Not even during the military government.

“Terrible things happened back then in Brazil. But our diplomacy was more skilful, more cautious and sought dialogue whenever possible. Now it has embarked upon an all-out ideological war against everything that is not western or Christian – according to their conception.

“I feel sorry for my colleagues in the foreign service because I know some of them are being forced to do what they do because it’s their only job.

“It’s not very different from the US state department under Trump – only more exaggerated, more ridiculous. And of course Trump has 4,000 nuclear weapons – he can do whatever he wants.”

Gustavo Bebianno – former Bolsonaro ally

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“The way the president is behaving is disastrous. So for me, this has been a disappointing year given the positive expectations I had before the elections.

“There are two different people: Captain Jair Bolsonaro is someone I highly respect [and] miss greatly… But President Jair Bolsonaro is a disappointment for the way he has betrayed his country and much of what he promised in the campaign.

“He started to see himself as a some sort of mythological entity, blessed by God. He became extremely arrogant and wouldn’t listen to anyone.

“You can agree with him about 99 things. But if you disagree on one and argue or try to offer another point of view, you are seen as a traitor. His administration became a sect of fanatics – and I’m not a fanatic.

“[Bolsonaro] is surrounded by radicals [and] is scared of everything. He is constantly afraid of being betrayed. That’s why he’s aggressive. He’s scared of journalists. He is scared of politicians.”

Davi Kopenawa Yanomami – indigenous intellectual, shaman and author

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“Indigenous people in Brazil feel a lot more fear under this president. This year, many illegal miners have entered our land. They pollute our rivers and kill our fish. Our people are starting to get malaria again.

“Bolsonaro is a garimpeiro [illegal miner]. He wants more land and fewer Indians. After he took power in January, he attacked us and said he no longer wants to recognise indigenous reserves. “He calls us lazy and says we produce nothing. That’s exactly the argument the illegal miners use.

“I don’t know the president personally, but I don’t like what I hear of him on TV and read in the newspaper. He thinks in a military way. The military doesn’t care about the land or indigenous people.

“That is bad for him and bad for us because he is president. He sets the direction of Brazil.

“In our culture, we don’t damage the river and trees. We care for the forest. But the miners just bring destruction. Who is getting rich from this? It’s not regular Brazilians in the cities. It’s politicians who are selling the wealth of Brazil to foreigners.

“I hope people outside can understand this and help us to defend ourselves and preserve nature.”

Karine Teles – actor

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“For Brazilian cinema, 2019 represented a gigantic pause. Nothing advanced. Everything was suspended. This is a massive loss for an industry that employed more than 300,000 people. It’s not just a cultural loss, it’s an economic loss too. So many families no longer have a way of supporting themselves.

“The new government admits it wants to filter the content being produced with public money. But Brazil’s constitution outlaws censorship. You can’t decide which films can and can’t be made with public funds. There’s a committee responsible for selecting projects according to artistic qualities, the artists involved, the producer – not the themes being portrayed.

“I think it’s an attempt to restrict the content of films. But our country is still a democracy where things work in a certain way. No leader – a mayor, a governor, or president – has the right to impose their personal tastes on the entire population.

“It makes no sense to obstruct a major industry that creates tax revenues, jobs and helps promote the name of our country around the world.

“I don’t know if it’s about Bolsonaro’s tastes, how he sees things or the people in his government. But he himself has said the government wants to control what will be made and what won’t – and this is censorship.”