A Brazilian judge on Friday ordered that former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's passport be returned to him, Deutsche Welle reports.
A lower court judge had ordered authorities to seize da Silva's passport hours before he was set to fly to Ethiopia for a United Nations conference on January 26, for fear he would seek asylum abroad.
"There is no way to conclude that [da Silva] was planning to flee the country" Judge Bruno Apolinario said in his ruling. The trip "was justified by a previously scheduled professional commitment," he added.
Lula's lawyer, Cristiano Zanin, said Friday's ruling had "corrected" the lower court order that had violated the former president's constitutional right to freedom of movement.