world
May 30, 2021 – 09:29

Tens of thousands of Brazilians took to the streets on Saturday to express their frustrations over the management of the Covid-19 crisis by President Jair Bolsonaro. These were the biggest protests the country has seen since the pandemic began last year.

Demonstrators in some of the country’s largest cities, including Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Brasilia, blamed the president and demanded an investigation into him, as well as called for better access to Covid-19 vaccines. Many protesters did not appear to be practicing social distancing, although most wore masks.

Bolsonaro repeatedly downplayed the pandemic in its early stages and sabotaged attempts to enforce social distancing or blockages. The Brazilian Senate is conducting an investigation into the treatment of the pandemic by the Bolsonaro government.

Brazil is facing a third wave of Covid-19. The Ministry of Health reported 79,670 new Covid-19 cases and 2012 coronavirus-related deaths on Saturday. The country has recorded more than 460,000 deaths from Covid-19 and 16 million infections.

Of its population of more than 210 million, about 19 million, or less than 9.4% have been fully vaccinated. / a2cnn