People hold crosses as a tribute to COVID-19 victims and as a protest against president Bolsonaro. Pic/AFP
Brazil surpassed a grim milestone of 1,00,000 deaths from COVID-19 on Saturday night, and five months after the first reported case the country has not shown signs of crushing the disease.
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The nation has been reporting an average of over 1,000 daily deaths from the pandemic since late May and reported 905 for the latest 24-hour period.
The Health Ministry said there had been 3,012,412 cases. In a tribute to COVID-19 victims, protesters placed crosses on the sand on the famed Copacabana beach and released 1,000 red balloons into the sky. The protest was organised by non-governmental group Rio de Paz.
People also protested against Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro for the way he has handled the pandemic. Bolsonaro has been a consistent sceptic about the impact of the disease and an advocate of lifting restrictions on the economy. He has frequently mingled in crowds, sometimes without a mask.
"We reach that mark (1,00,543) and many people seem to not see it, both among the government and our people. Death became normal," said Marcio do Nascimento Silva, a 56-year-old taxi driver who lost his children in the pandemic.
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