Hair salons reopen as death rate climbs
Bolsonaro draws criticism as virus ravages Brazil
SAO PAULO • Brazil witnessed another record-breaking daily death toll from coronavirus as it confirmed its reputation as an emerging global hotspot for the disease.
Brazil recorded a daily death toll of 881 on Tuesday, with the total death toll now at 12,461, the sixth worst in the world. Experts say the real figure is far higher due to lack of testing and poor record-keeping. The number of confirmed cases in the country now stands at 178,214, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Despite the rising numbers, its hard-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, issued a decree to reopen all gyms and hair salons in Latin America’s largest economy, even in regions with strict lockdowns in place.
Bolsonaro, who gained the “Tropical Trump” moniker even before the crisis, has turned Brazil into a pariah in much of the world for playing down the severity of the disease. He referred to the virus as a “little flu” and has been battling with state governors to lift lockdowns before the peak of the infection curve.
His latest decree — classifying gyms, fitness centres, hair salons and barber shops as “essential services,” which may remain open during isolation measures — has been branded as “irresponsible” by several of Brazil’s states, with 10 governors refusing to obey the president’s orders.
“Governors who do not agree with the decree can file lawsuits in court,” Bolsonaro wrote on social media. He later threatened to take his own legal actions against them if they do not comply.
The governor of Rio de Janeiro, Wilson Witzel, said Bolsonaro was “edging towards the precipice, and trying to take Brazil with him.”
In the state of Maranhao, left-wing governor Flavio Dino reckoned that the president wanted to “cause trouble.”
“He picks fights with everyone, everyone except the coronavirus,” said Witzel.
Bolsonaro’s government lowered its 2020 economic outlook on Wednesday, forecasting a gross domestic product contraction of 4.7 per cent, which would signal the country’s biggest economic crash in more than a century.
The new forecast, based on the expected economic damage from the pandemic, is sharply lower than its previous estimate of zero growth.
According to economic policy secretary Adolfo Sachsida, -4.7 per cent would be the biggest annual fall since records began in 1900.
Elsewhere in Latin America, neighbouring countries Argentina and Paraguay have called Brazil’s COVID-19 situation a “major threat” to the rest of the continent, arguing their borders should remain closed.
In Argentina, strict isolation policies have helped tame the spread of the virus, recording just 6,000 cases and 305 deaths.