Chronicle: "Many we meet are worried about democracy in the corona crisis Brazil"

In normal cases, the roads from South America's largest airport Guarulhos into central São Paulo are smoky. During rush hour traffic can take hours to arrive. Now the traffic on the motorway is sparse as in a small town. Here in São Paulo, the governor introduced early social distance measures - against President Bolsonaro's will.

São Paulo has over 20 million inhabitants and it is estimated that the entire state lands the figure of 46 million. This is Latin America's most important industrial area and the state economy is larger than neighboring Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia together. But the pandemic has put Brazil's economic engine on a low flame. Sao Paulo has been hit hard by covid-19 which has so far caused over 10,000 deaths in the state.

We have traveled the country road through parts of Argentina and Brazil to come here. And the contrast between the countries is razor-sharp. In Argentina, the journey is bordered by roadblocks where government employees in space-like protective suits control travel conditions and body temperature. Here in Brazil
we see nothing of it. And the difference in death rates is striking - Argentina has just over 800, Brazil over 44,000. Although compensated for crowds, the confirmed deaths in Brazil are ten times more than in neighboring countries.

Part of the explanation is that there is political chaos in Brazil with open conflict between different parts of the state apparatus. Two health ministers have disappeared from the government after a quarrel with Bolsonaro and now it is the military who govern the health ministry. Unclear and contradictory directives from the authorities have created an unsustainable situation that makes it very difficult for ordinary Brazilians to orient themselves and follow recommendations. For whom should you believe? The president? Minister of Health? The governor? Media?

Opposition groups that defy the risk of infection and protest on the streets accuse the government of using the pandemic to erode democracy in the country. Government officials have openly threatened military intervention if the judiciary goes too far in investigations against the president and his sons.

"Our democracy is in danger so it is not a place to stay at home," a young man tells us.

But Bolsonaros was elected with the most votes in Brazil's history and according to opinion polls, a third of the population still supports the president. And even the supporters are demonstrating - for the economy to be fully opened, against the Supreme Court and against what they consider to be black painting by Bolsonaro's board.

Leaded clouds hang heavily over São Paulo. Brazil is in a difficult situation with prolonged health crisis, approaching economic recession and political confrontation. But the corona pandemic still acts as a lid that prevents moods from completely boiling over. And in social media, discussions are ongoing about how appropriate it is with street manifestations in the midst of ongoing spread of infection.

The latest statistics indicate that the corona center may have reached its peak in Brazil and is now leveling out. Slowly shops and shopping centers reopened. Perhaps society can begin to return to something similar to normal. The Corona crisis is hopefully soon over. But the political crisis - it only gets deeper.