Tens of thousands protest in Brazil

Crowds demand Bolsonaro's impeachment and better vaccine access

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL – MAY 29: A demonstrator holds a sign against Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro that reads ‘Genocidal out’ during a protest against his government at Paulista avenue on May 29, 2021 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Demonstrations against Jair Bolsonaro take place today in over 100 cities of Brazil. Brazilian president faces a probe carried by the Congress over his response to the pandemic. Protestors have a wide range of demands, including impeachment for Bolsonaro, increase of emergency economic aid, end of violence against black population and urgent arrival of vaccines to speed up inoculation. Brazil is being hit hard by the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic and has reported over 457,000 deaths as cases continue to surge. (Photo by Miguel Schincariol/Getty Images)
By CNN.COM

PUBLISHED: May 30, 2021 

By Marcia Reverdosa and Rodrigo Pedroso | CNN

Tens of thousands of Brazilians took to the streets Saturday to voice their frustrations with President Jair Bolsonaro’s handling of the Covid-19 crisis, in what appeared to be the largest 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, called for the president’s impeachment and better access to Covid-19 vaccines. Many protesters did not appear to be practicing social distancing, although most wore masks.

Brazil is facing a possible third wave of Covid-19, with the Health Ministry reporting 79,670 new Covid-19 cases and 2,012 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, around 19 million — or fewer than 9.4% — have been fully vaccinated.

Bolsonaro repeatedly downplayed the pandemic in its initial stages. He previously called Covid-19 a “little flu” and sabotaged efforts to implement social distancing or lockdowns. Signs referring to Bolsonaro’s actions amounting to a “genocide” were seen at the demonstrations.

Brazil’s Senate is conducting an inquiry into the Bolsonaro government’s handling of the pandemic.
On GPS: Latin America's Covid crisis

In Sao Paulo, protesters expressed frustration with Bolsonaro’s policies.

Nurse Patricia Ferreira said Bolsonaro was “worse than the virus at the moment.”

“We are exhausted, with our healthcare system on the verge of collapse,” she said. “There is no solution to the pandemic with him (Bolsonaro) in power.”

Student Beatriz Fernanda Silva said she was demonstrating to honor her uncle, who she said was killed by Covid-19 at age 42.

“I came here to fight for the vaccine that he was unable to get and could have saved him. He died at the end of February and left two children and a wife,” the student said.

She said she recognized the risk she was taking by “being on the street in the middle of a pandemic,” but thought it was important to speak out.

“A lot of people are dying. Bolsonaro should do something about it, but from the start, he treated it with total neglect,” Silva told CNN.

The protests were largely peaceful, except for Pernambuco state capital Recife, where the police used rubber bullets, gas bombs, and pepper spray to disperse the crowd. Videos circulating on social media appeared to show one protester was shot in the eye by a rubber bullet and police were seen using pepper spray on Liana Cisne, a local councilwoman from the Worker´s Party.

Pernambuco state vice-governor Luciana Santos said the order to disperse the protesters did not come from the government and an investigation has been launched into police tactics. Governor Paulo Camara has suspended the police commander and officers involved, until the end of the inquiry.

The protests came a week after a motorbike rally President Bolsonaro organized in Rio de Janeiro. There, he advocated against restrictive measures while his supporters called for the overthrow of Brazil’s Supreme Court, which has given local governors and mayors the ability to enforce measures to prevent the spread of the virus.

Brazilian protesters call for Bolsonaro's impeachment
MAY 29, 2021 /

A protester holds a placard during protest against his Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's government during a demonstration in Brasilia, Brazil Saturday. Photo by Joédson Alves/EPA-EFE

May 29 (UPI) -- Tens of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets in Brazilian cities to demand President Jair Bolsonaro be impeached over his response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed nearly half a million people in the country.

The demonstrations are estimated to be the largest anti-Bolsonaro actions since the first cases of the virus were reported in the country, The Guardian reported.

As of Saturday, the novel coronavirus has killed 461,057 Brazilians and sickened 16.5 million people in the country, according to Johns Hopkins University's COVID-19 tracker, giving the country the second highest official death toll after the United States.

Many demonstrators in Rio carried homemade placards to commemorate loved ones they have lost to the virus.

Luiz Dantas, 18, who marched carrying a photo of his deceased 75-year-old grandfather, told The Guardian, "The culprit has a first and a second name," in reference to Bolsonaro's response to the virus.

A Brazilian Senate commission is investigating Bolsonaro's coronavirus policies, including allegations that his administration promoted unproven remedies, failed to secure vaccines and pressured local leaders who wanted to impose stricter health restrictions, Al Jazeera reported.

"Today is a decisive milestone in the battle to defeat Bolsonaro's genocidal administration," said Silvia de Mendonça, 55, a civil rights activist from Brazil's Unified Black Movement as she led protesters through Rio's city center.

Thousands of people protested against Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro on Saturday in Rio de Janeiro, calling for his impeachment and criticizing his handling of the pandemic.(May 29)