Brazil has started to ease up on restrictions implemented on social movement ever since the coronavirus outbreak started in the Latin American country. However, new photos reveal the apparent risks that come with no social distancing rules.
Sao Paulo Luz Station Photos Reveal Truth about Brazil's COVID-19 Containment Methods
In new photos from the Luz Station in Sao Paulo, hundreds of people are seen disembarking trains. In the photos, people are sandwiched and walk too close to each other, as if the coronavirus crisis is not existing in the country.
The photos came out roughly a day after Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro allowed har salons and gyms to operate, tagging them as "essential services" that are necessary even with the COVID-19 crisis.
The photos do show people wearing masks as they squeeze their way out of trains and into departing trains. However, global health authorities have been reiterating that even with face masks, social distancing is still more effective in preventing further infections.
Some local governments have been calling out Bolsonaro for allowing establishments to stay open following Monday's record of 5,632 new COVID-19 infections.
Among the business segments that Bolsonaro identified as essential are churches, lotteries, industrial production, and civil construction. It is worth noting that these establishments draw crowds of people.
Bolsonaro against All Odds
Over the past few weeks, Bolsonaro has gained the attention of global health authorities and other governments for his continuous dismissal of the new pandemic that has already killed over 10,000 in his country.
According to The Guardian, Bolsonaro showed his defiance of global health protocols by jet-skiing over the weekend after canceling a barbeque party at the presidential palace, sparking an outcry over his handling of the COVID-19 outbreak in Brazil.
During his jet-ski stunt, Bolsonaro reportedly told people on a floating barbecue pit-stop that "seventy percent are going to catch the virus." He reportedly added that "there's nothing to be done. It's madness."
Presidential Tests a 'Private' Matter?
Aside from a growing number of people expressing their disappointment over Bolsonaro's supposed anti-coronavirus measures, there are still calls for his COVID-19 tests to be unveiled to the public.
The Superior Court of Justice has allowed Bolsonaro to keep his test results private but journalists have shown determination in releasing his results following the confirmation that at least 24 government officials who were with Bolsonaro over the past two months have since contracted the disease.
Bolsonaro was tested twice and he said both tests came out negative. Daily newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo has sent an appeal to the highest court in Brazil, the Supreme Court, to force the president to release his COVID-19 test results.
The Brazilian president's seeming lack of empathy on his country's devastating situation comes as Brazil logged a total of 169,594 confirmed coronavirus cases and 11,653 deaths.
