The Politics of Death: Bolsonaro and the COVID-19 Pandemic in Brazil

   There is a calculated political callousness in Bolsonaro’s mishandling of the COVID pandemic in Brazil. A far-right populist who raised to power as Brazilians grew tired of the corruption and ineffectiveness of 15 years of leftist government, Bolsonaro has consistently dismissed the pandemic as a “little flu” refused to wear a mask, belittled citizens for practicing social distance, insisted on reopening the economy throughout the worst surges, and urged Brazilians to “stop whining and take it like a man.” Worse yet, after blindly following Trump’s playbook, Bolsonaro alienated China and Russia, the only countries willing to supply Brazil with their vaccines. As a result, vaccinations have all but halted in the country, with less than 3% of the population protected against the SARS-COV-2 virus while Brazil experiences the second highest death toll in the world.

According to the Financial Times, Brazil’s health system is “close to collapse,” with widespread shortages of beds, syringes, basic medical supplies, and even oxygen tanks. For an economy heavily dependent on the informal sector, the lockdowns have left a large proportion of poor families in sheer misery and destitution. At the same time, to force the poorest segments of the population back to work, Bolsonaro has refused to approve additional welfare payments declaring that “Brazil is broke.”

    Politically, Bolsonaro is capitalizing on the chaos and threatening to use “my military” to impose order. A former army captain, the president has voiced his pride in the military coup of 1964 that put the country under military dictatorship for more than two decades. With the former leftist president Lula now free to run again, Bolsonaro has hinted that he will delay the 2022 presidential elections using the military police and armed forces, if necessary.

     Jair Bolsonaro has recently said that there is a war against him. In the past month, there have been over 45,000 deaths due to COVID-19. Although there seems to be an obvious cause for the massive overcrowding of hospitals, Bolsonaro still manages to deny the severity of COVID-19. Bolsonaro is so invested in the economy that whenever a concern or question arises about COVID or a lockdown his immediate response is about the economy. Just recently he stated, "Of course, we want a solution and regret any death, but why did the lockdown exist? You are seeing the population suffering from unemployment. Introduce me to a country where the fight against the Covid is working," Bolsonaro is trying to justify the number of deaths in brazil due to this virus by emphasizing the devastation of unemployment. Many Brazilian citizens have criticized Bolsonaro and have even gone to the extent of encouraging an impeachment. Although this seems like a response that is long overdue Bolsonaros control over the military and the political "right" will allow him to remain in office seemingly as long as he pleases. Citizens all over brazil are attending rallies and gatherings chanting "murderer" while Bolsonaro continues to downplay the severity of this disease. Recently a scientist has even gone so far as to say, “What I see before me is a country that attaches no value to the lives of its citizens." 

     For now, Brazilian’s scenes of sunrises, white sand beaches, and Carnaval have given a place to pictures of mass graves and nationwide suffering. 

 Sources: 

https://www.ft.com/content/55713895-2423-4259-a222-f778f9587490

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-brazilian-government-accused-of-hiding-covid-19-death-toll-after-it-removes-data-12002212

https://news.sky.com/story/bolsonaro-tells-brazil-to-stop-whining-over-covid-despite-worlds-second-highest-death-toll-12236343

https://www.google.com/search?q=brazil+covid+19+death+chart&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjnnoOhwefvAhUZMlkFHbytBlkQ_AUoAXoECAEQAw&biw=1440&bih=797&dpr=2#imgrc=cH9WUKsddVf5ZM

https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/19/americas/bolsonaro-war-covid-hospitals-latam-intl/index.html

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/mar/24/anger-in-brazil-as-bolsonaro-claims-citizens-

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