Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has provoked controversy by posting an obscene video of two revellers at Carnival, saying he wanted to reveal the truth about the festival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
The clip posted on Twitter shows two men engaging in sex acts on top of a taxi shelter during a street party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The far-right leader suggested such scenes were becoming normal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mr Bolsonaro, a deeply divisive figure who has made racist, homophobic and misogynistic remarks but was a clear winner in last year’s election, was the focus of much criticism in many Carnival celebrations across Brazil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The footage was shared by the president late on Tuesday – when the festivities were still under way – and includes one man urinating on another person in front of a crowd of revellers in what appears to be downtown S\u00e3o Paulo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“I don’t feel comfortable showing it, but we have to expose the truth so the population are aware,” said the president to his 3.46 million followers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“This is what many street parties in the Brazilian Carnival have turned into,” he added, inviting people to “comment and reach their conclusions”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some 35,000 comments followed. They included critics of the president, personalities and even people who said were his supporters and condemned his decision to post the video.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Others said they would report the president’s post for offensive content. Hours later, a message of sensitive material was added to the video but it was not clear if it was an initiative by Twitter or Mr Bolsonaro himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some users, however, have supported the president – elected with strong support of conservative and evangelical voters – condemning what they called “indecent” behaviour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The video was recorded on Monday during a street party known as a “bloco”, Folha de S.Paulo newspaper reports, and it had sparked controversy even before the president’s tweet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n