Brazil acting president hits out at 'silent' Bolsonaro in New Year speech

FILE PHOTO: Brazil's Vice President Hamilton Mourao looks on next to Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro during a ceremony at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil February 11, 2022. REUTERS/Adriano Machado

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil's acting president, Hamilton Mourao, on Saturday criticized outgoing far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro for allowing anti-democratic sentiment to thrive in the wake of this year's election, in a veiled dig in a New Year speech.

While defending some aspects of Bolsonaro's four years in power, such as leaving behind a strong economy, Mourao also criticized environmental backsliding after deforestation in the Amazon reached a 15-year-high under his watch.