A draft of a major inquiry into the Brazilian government’s handling of the COVID pandemic has recommended that the country’s President Bolsonaro should be charged with several serious crimes over his actions.
The report will be the culmination of a six-month inquiry that has revealed scandals and corruption in the country’s government.
Excerpts leaked to the media indicate that the panel wants Bolsonaro to face nine charges, though initial recommendations that the president be charged with homicide and genocide against indigenous groups were dropped on Tuesday.
The massive and highly unusual 1200 page report urges charges of crimes against humanity, forging documents and incitement to crime. It blames Bolsonaro’s policies for the deaths of 300 000 Brazilians, about half of the current COVID death toll in Brazil, which is the world’s second largest. He repeatedly pushed unproven drugs such as hydroxychloroquine long after they had found to be ineffective.
Despite the serious allegations, what this means for Bolsonaro is unclear, according to the BBC’s South America correspondent Katy Watson.
The draft report will still have to be voted on by the Senate commission, where it could be vetoed and altered. Given the political realities of Brazil, it is unclear if these will ever lead to criminal charges.
President Bolsonaro has dismissed the Congressional inquiry as politically motivated, and has frequently spoken out against COVID interventions such as lockdowns, masks and vaccinations.
In March this year, he infamously told Brazilians to “stop whining” about COVID, a day after the country saw a record rise in deaths over a 24-hour period.
However, Mr Bolsonaro’s popularity has already been dented by the pandemic, and this report could make life much harder for him if he wants to run for a second term in Brazil’s 2022 elections.
Speaking to the BBC in advance of the publication of the report, the inquiry rapporteur, Senator Renan Calheiros, said that the panel wanted to punish those who contributed to “this massacre of Brazilians”.
Source: BBC News
