Thread by @clarewenham

As #Brazil becomes the new epicentre of #COVID19 these are my must reads to understand the political context in which the outbreak emerged and the impact of this (a thread)

This piece by @Deisy_Ventura early on in the outbreak captures a lot of the anticipated tensions within the SUS (unified health system); between Bolsonaro, science and populism (similar in many ways to US, UK etc) - which unfortunately have become real!

americas.chathamhouse.org/article/betwee…

Equally great background to #Bolsonaro role in driving the #COVID19 spread in #Brazil - and how much of this is down to politics over public health:

@Deisy_Ventura @gabilotta

theconversation.com/brazil-jair-bo…

The first #Brazil #COVID19 death was a domestic worker who's boss had been abroad and hadnt informed her of any potential risk. This one case demonstrates the political economy of the outbreak; that lower socio-economic groups most affected by outbreak:

theguardian.com/world/2020/jun…

As cases soar, @jairbolsonaro continues to deny the outbreak, openly coughing in public after his likely #covid19 infection, push to open up the economy, mock anyone socially distancing, including state governors..

telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/05/2…

Oh, and @jairbolsonaro fired 2 health ministers who didnt agree with him - in the middle of a pandemic - let that sink in...

oglobo.globo.com/brasil/bolsona…

#COVID19 control left to individual states and municipalities, has meant different experiences from Rio Grande do Sul leading in effective pandemic response, but with many states on different paths - with devastating effects - Sao Paulo worst affected

arabnews.com/node/1682701

Amid the government and #COVID19 chaos, some favelas have turned to territorial governance with some gang members taking control of social distancing and quarantine measures

g1.globo.com/rj/rio-de-jane…

Meanwhile, as the defunded public health system cracks under the strain of 800,000 #COVID19 cases - what happens to the competing outbreaks that Brazil faces - particularly those of Dengue, Chikungunya, yellow fever and Zika?

@gabilotta @LSE_LACC

blogs.lse.ac.uk/latamcaribbean…

And diversion to #COVID19 has meant that therapy and social support for children born with congenital #zika syndrome are ceasing

g1.globo.com/pe/pernambuco/…

But, most importantly, let's not forget amid this crisis, that @jairbolsonaro called into a talk show with a man dressed as a donkey #COVID19 #Brazil #donkey

https://twitter.com/tomphillipsin/status/1244750654620479491?s=20

This whole response distinctly difference to how #Brazil responded to #Zika a previous #PHEIC.

@debfrombrazil wrote about this in @SecDialogue :

journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.117….

And key people to follow to keep up with all things #COVID19 in #Brazil @GustavoCMatta @Deisy_Ventura @campos @gabilotta @Debora_D_Diniz @agencia_fiocruz @tomphillipsin