As per tradition, the Brazilian representative, President Jair Bolsonaro, opened the floor for discussions in this year’s United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). Whereas world leaders expected to focus largely on the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Brazilian president made sure to reiterate in his speech his defense of the malaria medicine hydroxychloroquine as an unproven treatment, and his attacks on lockdown measures. The Brazilian president, unvaccinated, also appears to have broken the United Nation’s vaccine honor system.
With Brazil’s death rates due to COVID-19 surpassing half a million—ranking second in the world—how is it possible to have a politician whose speech plays down the seriousness of the disease and refuses the need to take decisive measures regarding the pandemic to take part in such an important event? Shouldn’t Bolsonaro be held accountable for the crisis in Brazil?
Over a year ago, the start of the COVID-19 pandemic brought despair to Brazil. The first case was documented in February 2020, and in less than three months over 10 thousand people had died of the disease.
Not long before that, Bolsonaro had referred to COVID-19 as “just a little flu,” diminishing the country’s situation. The nation’s chaotic condition was deepened by Bolsonaro’s incompetence in keeping a health minister in charge—four different ministers held the position during the pandemic, two of them resigned due to disagreeing with Bolsonaro’s policies and plans.
Five months into the pandemic, Bolsonaro tested positive for COVID. After getting the disease, he should finally be able to recognize the seriousness of it firsthand, but, since then, he has repeatedly promoted chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine—both proven to be ineffective to both hospitalized and nonhospitalized patients—to prevent and mitigate the effects of COVID-19. In several studies, it has been proven that these medicines do not decrease mortality, do not ward off the virus, and can cause cardiac adverse events in patients with COVID-19.
In January 2021, the capital of the state of Amazonas, Manaus, went through one of the worst moments during the pandemic in Brazil when hospitals ran out of oxygen, becoming a type of “suffocation center.” Bolsonaro’s denialist administration, which concentrated its efforts to defend an ineffective medicine, caused the death of 30 patients for lacking logistics in the oxygen crisis.
By November 2020, the Brazilian government had ignored five proposals from Pfizer regarding vaccine offers—over 70 million doses could have been delivered by the end of the year. The emergency use authorization for the COVID-19 vaccines was supposed to bring the end of the pandemic era, however, the Brazilian president’s opposition to getting the vaccine delayed the vaccination kickoff in Brazil.
All the stands president Bolsonaro has taken, anti-mask, anti-vaccines, anti-lockdown measures and anti-social distancing; by refusing to acknowledge the need for protective measures—the only proven way to fight off the virus—he has driven Brazil to reach over half a million deaths—that could have been avoided. Other countries that quickly implemented masks-mandates, lockdowns, dedicated part of the efforts to educational campaigns and even had presidents declaring the disease the country’s “biggest enemy”, got remarkable outcomes. As someone who has a highly influential position in the Brazilian government, Bolsonaro is directly controlling the dissemination of the virus.
His negationist policies have endangered the lives of all Brazilians, and it is about time he’s been brought to justice. Bolsonaro’s negligent COVID response finds itself in the middle of a parliament inquiry, the company “Prevent Sênior”—promoted by the Bolsonaro family for backing hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19—omitted deaths of patients who were given hydroxychloroquine as part of govern-commissioned research on the drug’s efficacy. How many more lives will it take to get Bolsonaro impeached? Aren’t 594,443 lives enough?
