[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Jair Bolsonaro, the President of Brazil, is facing the risk of being indicted for murder by the National Congress due to his inadequate response to COVID-19.
On the 19th (local time), the US CNN reported that it had obtained a 1,200-page government investigation report prepared by the COVID-19 Parliamentary Inquiry Commission under the Brazilian Senate. The report was compiled by the commission, led by Senator Hennan Calheiros, after more than 50 hearings over six months.
Brazil, which has the second highest number of deaths worldwide after the United States, has now surpassed 600,000 deaths.
The report particularly pointed out that President Bolsonaro is responsible for the mass killing of indigenous groups vulnerable to the COVID-19 virus due to the administration’s policies.
The commission applied at least 11 charges against President Bolsonaro, including murder and incitement to crimes against humanity.
The report criticized President Bolsonaro for ignoring the advice of health and quarantine experts and adopting reckless policies that hoped for herd immunity, resulting in hundreds of thousands of deaths.
It stated that President Bolsonaro refused to implement lockdowns and economic activity suspensions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and encouraged gatherings and protests.
He frequently disregarded quarantine rules, such as refusing to wear masks in hospitals and on beaches. On the 13th, he publicly declared his intention not to receive the vaccine at all.
Furthermore, President Bolsonaro actively promoted chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, whose effectiveness has not been verified, as COVID-19 treatments. The report included testimony from former Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta that the government supported these treatments without scientific evidence.
The commission plans to release the report in the Senate the following day and hold a vote to adopt the report by next week, but foreign media predict it is uncertain whether President Bolsonaro will actually be indicted.
For an indictment to proceed, both the Senate and the House of Representatives must approve the report, and then the Attorney General must decide to prosecute. However, the House is controlled by supporters of the president, and the Attorney General is also a person appointed by President Bolsonaro.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
