Brazilian lawmakers investigating the government’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic have recommended criminal charges against President Jair Bolsonaro.
The Brazilian Senate investigative committee recommended that Bolsonaro be charged with crimes against humanity, incitement to crime and charlatanism, among other counts, per CNN. The report took six months to compose and is more than 1,300 pages long.
He narrowly avoided genocide and murder charges.
More than 605,000 people have died of Covid-19 in Brazil — the second-highest number of deaths in the world after the United States.
In May, a parliamentary inquiry revealed that Bolsonaro ignored repeated warnings about his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I warned Bolsonaro systematically of the consequences of not adopting the recommendations of science,” former Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta said. During the inquiry, Mandetta presented the CPI with a letter dated March 28, 2020. The letter urged the president to follow health ministry recommendations.
The following month, Mandetta was fired for challenging the president’s endorsement of the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine as a coronavirus treatment. Donald Trump, an allay of Bolsonaro, was also condemned for pushing hydroxychloroquine as a COVID-19 cure against the advisement of the medical community.
Bolsonaro has come under fire repeatedly for spreading misinformation about the deadly virus. In July, YouTube removed videos from the Brazilian leader.
“Our policies don’t allow content that claims hydroxychloroquine and/or Ivermectin are effective to treat or prevent Covid-19, claims that there is a guaranteed cure for Covid-19, and claims that masks don’t work to prevent the spread of the virus,” YouTube said in a statement at the time. “This is in line with the guidance of local and global health authorities, and we update our policies as guidance changes.”
Bolsonaro also publicly admonished citizens for their coronavirus-related caution.
“Stop whining. How long are you going to keep crying about it?” Bolsonaro said at an event per BBC. “How much longer will you stay at home and close everything? No one can stand it anymore. We regret the deaths, again, but we need a solution.”
