Last week Brazil’s corona virus cases crossed 100,000 with more than 7000 deaths. The numbers are accelerating and the tragedy is mounting. How did president Bolsonaro react to this? With a joke. Yes, seriously, with a joke. He said “My name is Messiah, but I cannot work miracles”.
His response to the numbers, “So what? What do you want me to do?”. Pure contempt and supreme indifference. Zero responsibility and leadership.
Twenty top officials of his government including his Spokesman and National Security Minister. So what? Bolsonaro announced a barbecue for 30 friends in the presidential palace on Saturday 8 May. He joked that he might extend the invitation to thousands more.
In most countries, Presidents and Prime Ministers have visited hospitals and comforted victims, bereaved families and healthcare staff. What about President Bolsonaro? He goes to a shooting range. He grins in front of a bullet-riddled target saying “ Pretty good. Eh?”.
Brazil faces shortage of ventilators, masks and other essential items to fight the covid19. This does not concern Bolsonaro. He is only worried about shortage of guns in the country. He loves guns and the gun lobbies including the notorious National Rifle Association (NRA) of US love him. So when the governors are scrambling to get ventilators, Bolsonaro wants to see more guns in the country by loosening the gun control laws. On 17 April, he shut down a military project which sought to use Blockchain technology to track guns for better control of circulation of firearms in the country. The Public Prosecutor’s office has opened investigations on the constituitionality of this action.
In other countries, Presidents are meeting scientists and doctors seeking their advice to deal with the virus. Whom does Bolsonaro meet? On 4 May, Bolsonaro received at the Presidential palace ex-Lt Colonel Sebastian Curio Rodrigues de Moura, who was a notorious assassin and torturer of leftists during the military dictatorship. Bolsonaro had once said, “ the problem with the dictatorship was that it did not kill enough leftists”. He does not have any weakness such as empathy or sensitivity. He had mocked the tortures suffered by Dilma Rouseff and praised the army officer who did the torturing.
Mass graves are being dug in Manaus to bury the soaring number of dead. Many of them are indigenous people. The mayor of Manaus city was in tears while describing the catastrophic situation. They have acute shortage of coffins besides medicines and equipments. Unable to get the attention of Bolsonaro, the indigenous leaders have requested for help from WHO and even from Greta Thunberg. Millions of poor living in favelas (slums) in Rio and Sao Paulo without adequate water and sanitation facilities are desperately struggling against the virus outbreak. Even the drug trafficking gangs have started helping the slum residents who are mostly Afro Brazilians. Has President Bolsonaro done or atleast said something. Nada. Nothing. The racist Bolsonaro is perhaps hoping that the corona virus kills as many blacks and native Indians.
People around the world pay attention to the Covid-19 guidelines of the World Health Organisation. Not Bolsonaro. He not only ignores WHO advice but attacks WHO with a preposterous allegation that the organization is promoting masturbation and homosexuality among young children.
Bolsonaro is the perfect ally helping the corona virus to spread and cause more deaths. He does this job effectively and consistently. He fights against the governors and health officials who are fighting against Covid 19. He has been fiercely obstructing their work with his statements and actions. He fired his health minister who was doing an excellent job.
Bolsonaro downplays the corona virus calling it as “simple cold” and a “fantasy” and “hysteria” promoted by the media to weaken his government. Such talk clearly misleads and confuses the general population. He criticizes the lockdown imposed by state and municipal authorities. He calls the social distancing measures imposed by governors and mayors as ‘crime’. In late March, Bolsonaro launched #BrazilCannotStop campaign encouraging Brazilians to get back to work and normal life. Fortunately, a Federal Judge rescued the country by banning this dangerous Presidential campaign.
Bolsonaro fights fiercely against social distancing and quarantine. He goes around shaking hands and taking selfies with his supporters, mobilized in rallies and marches by his sons and allies. He calls for resumption of football games arguing that players are less likely to die from Covid-19 because of their physical fitness. He said very seriously that “Brazilians could swim in excrement and still emerge unscathed”. Gutter language is his style.
In a major speech on 24 March, Bolsonaro claimed that Brazil was not particularly vulnerable to the virus. Unlike feeble Italy, with its “ large number of elderly people” contemporary Brazil, he argued,” has everything, yes, everything to be a great nation” He then touted his own ‘athlete’s history’.
According to studies made by University of Sao Paulo, the country may already have the most corona virus cases in the world. The number of cases could be as high as 1.6 million, more than that of US. But the testing in Brazil is minimal due to lack of federal government support and coordination and the negative attitude of President Bolsonaro.
Bolsonaro attacks the media day in and day out. He barks at journalists using the language of street thugs when they ask questions. Taking the cue from him, his supporters physically attack journalists in the rallies in which he is present. In December last year he told a journalist, “you have a terribly gay face”. He told another reporter to “ ask your mother about your father”. There is no limit to his vulgarity and crudeness.
At the same time he and his sons are spreading fake news and false information using the social media. These became unacceptable even for Facebook and Twitter which had removed some of their postings. The prosecutors are investigating the illegal fake news campaigns of Bolsonaro sons.
Bolsonaro attacks the Congress and the Judiciary during his media interactions and speeches to his followers. He incites his followers who shout anti-democratic slogans and call for return to military dictatorship as was there in 1964-85. Such an open call for military dictatorship in a protest in the presence of President Bolsonaro in front of the army headquarters had alerted the Attorney General who is examining the incident and its implications. The Defence Ministry had issued a statement on 4 May saying that the armed forces are dedicated to their constituitional mission and democracy.
What is the priority of President Bolsonaro? Family First. Yes, protecting and promoting family interests. Earlier this month, he fired the Federal Police chief and appointed a family friend to that post to prevent the ongoing criminal investigations against his sons and allies for murder, money laundering and illegal social media disinformation campaigns. But his Justice Minister Sergio Moro revolted and resigned after publicly accusing Bolsonaro of criminal obstruction of justice. The Supreme court intervened and voided Bolsonaro’s appointment. Retreating, he has now proposed another family friend. The Supreme Court has authorised federal police and prosecutors to start investigations on the basis of Moro’s charges against Bolsonaro. The Association of members of the Federal Police has sent a letter to President Bolsonaro to “ keep (the constituitionally required) distance” and not interfere in the day to day work of the Chief of the Federal Police to maintain objectivity and public confidence.
Last year, Bolsonaro wanted to make his son as ambassador to US with the argument that ‘his son and Trump’s son are friends’. But fortunately, he was prevented by the public outcry against this blatant nepotism.
Besides breaking the country internally with his polarizing hate speeches, Bolsonaro and his clan continue to burn the external bridges with the world. He had insulted personally the wife of the French President. He has made disparaging remarks against Alberto Fernandez, President of Argentina, the most important partner in the neighbourhood. He had provoked China by visiting Taiwan during his campaign. Last month, Bolsonaro’s son Eduardo (who is a kind of super foreign minister) antagonized China with a tweet criticizing lack of democracy and transparency in China and its faulty handling of the virus. The Chinese embassy counterattacked him with unprecedented undiplomatic language, saying that he had contracted a “mental virus” while in the United States. It went on, “Sadly, you are a person without any international vision or common sense. We suggest you don’t rush to become the U.S. spokesman in Brazil”. Some state governors and exporters apologized to the ambassador of China, the largest destination of Brazil’s exports and the largest trade partner. Some state governors were seeking Chinese assistance for supply of masks, protective gear, ventilators.
Bolsonaro’s ministers are competing with each other to impress the boss with their own incendiary writings and statements. Foreign Minister Araujo wrote an intellectual article articulating his new theory that the “pandemic could be a global project to transform the world into a concentration camp and impose communism via the Comunavirus”.
Education Minister Weintraub had issued a tweet using sarcastic Chinese accent saying that the corona virus would serve the interests of China. The Chinese ambassador called him as a racist. The Supreme Court has ordered an investigation into the Minister’s action.
In the last sixteen months, the Bolsonaro administration has managed to spoil the good image assiduously built over the years by the professional Brazilian diplomats. He has shocked the world with his bigotry on global environmental concerns. Brazil stands today totally isolated in Latin America in contrast to the leadership role it enjoyed during President Lula’s time. Brazil voted against a UN General Assembly resolution of 20 April which sought international cooperation to ensure global access to medicines and vaccines to deal with Covid19, cosponsored by 179 countries. This is ironical given the fact that Brazil had lead the fight of the developing world for access to affordable HIV/AIDS medicines successfully even going to the brave extent of breaking some international patents. Recently Brazil had voted against a resolution on Palestine, as a sign of solidarity with US. This has surprised and alienated the members of the developing world even more.
The only bridge Bolsonaro has built is a wrong bridge…with President Trump, his role model. But this is a temporary and unsustainable one. He wanted total alignment of Brazil’s foreign policy with that of Trump. But the Itamaraty (foreign office) and the military have restrained the president. He wanted to shift the embassy to Jerusalem. Again, the decision was not allowed to be implemented.
Most people voted for Bolsonaro in 2018, outraged against the corruption scandals involving the Workers Party and other mainstream political parties and leaders. It was an anti-incumbency vote. Bolsonaro benefitted from the giant anti-status quo wave. Many of those who voted for him regret their decision now. The victims and families of covid19 are horrified by his inhuman approach. Some people had hoped that power and prestige as president might make him moderate and pragmatic. They are disillusioned to see that he has become worse and even more dangerous by inciting anti-democratic attacks from the Presidential palace. Many of whom voted for him, are now banging pots and pans yelling “Bolsonaro out” whenever Bolsonaro comes on the TV. They are afraid that the longer Bolsonaro continues as president, there will be more deaths and damage to the country.
While Bolsonaro preaches against social distancing, sensible and respected politicians, businessmen, civil society leaders and professionals keep a long distance from him considering him as more toxic than the corona virus. He does not have the support of any significant political party. He has moved from one fringe party to another eight times so far. During his Presidential campaign he was member of the Social Liberal Party. He left this party in November 2019 over dispute on control of campaign funds. Thereafter he formed his own party called as the Alliance for Brazil with himself as president and his son as vice president. But it does not have any recognizable leaders except for his family and friends.
The Congress has already received at least two dozen impeachment petitions. The Congress had impeached President Dilma Rouseff in 2016 for a simple budget manipulation. This is nothing in comparison to Bolsonaro who has in his hand the blood of thousands who have died due to his commissions and omissions. However, the lobbies of Bullets, Beef and Bible (evangelicals) in the Congress are supporting him in order to make use of him to advance their own partisan agenda. Some other legislators are willing to support him on the calculation that this is the best time to bargain for favours from him in return for support.
Rodrigo Maia, the president of the Lower House of the Congress tweeted,”The whole world is united in the fight against the corona virus. In Brazil, we have to fight against the corona virus and the virus of authoritarianism”. Former President Fernando Henrique Cardoso has cautioned that Bolsonaro’s authoritarian impulses could lead to a military dictatorship. This is dangerous for the young Brazilian democracy which was restored from military dictatorship in 1985.
The number of infections has crossed 190,000 and deaths over 13000 as on 14 May. Clearly, the Bolsonaro virus has become a greater threat for Brazil than the Corona virus.
An edited version of this appeared in The Week Magazine on 14 May
https://www.theweek.in/theweek/more/2020/05/14/far-right-far-wrong.html
An edited version of this appeared in The Week Magazine on 14 May
https://www.theweek.in/theweek/more/2020/05/14/far-right-far-wrong.html
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