ヘリから手を振り、馬で登場　反コロナ対策デモにブラジル大統領

【ＡＦＰ＝時事】新型コロナウイルス対策で厳しい批判にさらされ、支持率が低下しているブラジルのジャイル・ボルソナロ大統領が１５日、新型コロナ対策の中止を訴えるデモに参加した。ボルソナロ氏は会場上空を飛ぶヘリコプターから手を振り、馬に乗って登場。首都ブラジリアの官庁街に集まった数万人の聴衆を沸かせた。（写真はデモの上空を飛ぶヘリコプターから手を振るボルソナロ大統領）
　ボルソナロ氏は支持基盤である農民や宗教右派など保守派の「兵士」を集めるとし、複数の都市で集会への参加を呼び掛けた。早朝、首都ブラジリアには数百台のトラックが到着した。
　農民やトラック運転手らに謝意を表したボルソナロ氏は、感染封じ込め対策を講じた「一部の州知事や市長」を攻撃した。
　ブラジルでは新型コロナウイルスの感染で４３万人以上が死亡し、今も毎日２０００人以上が新たに感染している。ブラジルの新型コロナによる死者は米国に次いで世界で２番目に多いが、米国とは異なり、２億１２００万人の国民に接種する十分な量のワクチンの入手が難しい状況にある。
　ボルソナロ氏は新型コロナウイルスを「小さなインフルエンザ」と呼び、ワクチンの効果を疑問視しているが、ブラジルの調査会社ダッタフォーリャが先週発表した世論調査結果によると、支持率は２４％と過去最低を記録している。同じ調査でボルソナロ氏の弾劾訴追に賛成するとの回答は４９％で、反対の４６％を上回った。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】

〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2021/05/17-16:01）

Far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro rallied his base Saturday, appearing on horseback and even in a helicopter flyover, as his popularity dips and he faces harsh criticism for his handling of the pandemic which has ravaged his country.
Hundreds of trucks arrived in Brasilia early in the morning after Bolsonaro put out a call for rallies in several cities, which were meant to gather the country's conservative soldiers, including farmers and the religious right.
Brazil, which has recorded more than 430,000 Covid-19 deaths and is notching more than 2,000 more each day, is the second hardest-hit country in the world after the United States.
Unlike America, however, it is facing difficulties in acquiring enough vaccines for its 212 million people.
Bolsonaro, who has called the deadly virus nothing more than a little flu and questioned the efficacy of vaccines, has seen his approval rating hit an all-time low of 24 percent, according to a survey published this week by the respected firm Datafolha.
The survey additionally revealed that 49 percent of Brazilians favor his impeachment, with 46 against.
- 'Support of our president' -
We are here giving support to our president, said Carine de Souza, a rural producer from Mato Grosso state who was at the rally in Brasilia. We need support, because agriculture did not come to a halt in the pandemic.
Bolsonaro flew over the rally in a helicopter and appeared on horseback to greet tens of thousands of followers who assembled on the Esplanade of Ministries.
Thanking farmers and truck drivers, Bolsonaro attacked some governors and mayors who have enacted measures to contain the virus.
Similar so-called Christian Family Freedom Marches were to be held in nearly every state capital.
The Datafolha survey places former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva ahead in the country's 2022 presidential elections, and comes as the Senate investigates the government's management of Covid-19 pandemic.
In a short speech Bolsonaro cast doubt on the country's electronic voting system, which he questions without any evidence of malfunction.
Referring to Lula he said that if we do not have a (printed) and monitored vote, that scoundrel will win next year's election by fraud.
The issue of printed ballots was also central to a small rally in Sao Paulo, where fewer than 100 people gathered on Paulista Avenue dressed in the colors of Brazil's flag.
Printed ballots are the guarantee that the people have to ensure democracy, said Arlette Oliveira, 68, who attended the demonstration holding a poster with the same message.
In other state capitals, small rallies heeded the president's call.
In addition to printed ballots, protesters focused on a religious agenda and spoke against Brazil's top court and Congress, institutions that have served as counterweights to Bolsonaro as he has battled governors and mayors who have instituted measures to curb the pandemic.