As Brazil flies past the tragic milestone of four hundred thousand deaths by Covid-19, Greenpeace Brazil activists are paying homage and pledging solidarity with the victims of the pandemic and their families. Activists used a 14-metre high and 92 metre-long message that spelled out, "400 thousand lives" (in Portuguese) on a floating raft at the Meeting of Waters - the junction between the Rivers Negro and Solimões, in Manaus. Greenpeace Brazil used almost 18 tonnes of food, masks, hygiene supplies and oxygen cylinders for the message, supplies that will be donated to humanitarian organisations in the Manaus region.
"Today we reach the tragic number of 400 thousand people who lost their lives in Brazil due to a situation that, for the most part, could have been avoided. We are living today in a country where there is a lack of respect to the Brazilian population and where millions of people are abandoned to their own luck, without food, jobs or vaccines. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the federal government has been dealing with the pandemic irresponsibly and not protecting the people, causing a profound damage to thousands of families. It's a state that could have been avoided if the pandemic had been treated with seriousness and science had been respected", said Tica Minami, Programme Director of Greenpeace Brazil.
The activity took place in Manaus, one of the cities most impacted by the health crisis in Brazil. The activists hope to show solidarity with the Brazilian people and, at the same, demand the State take responsibility in fighting against the Covid-19 pandemic through efficient methods to protect the entire Brazilian population.
The food and hygiene materials used in the activity will be donated to the communities and institutions CUFA Manaus, Comunidade do Julião, Parque das Tribos, Aldeia Beija-flor e Associação Omisma Watyamã. Since last year, Greenpeace Brazil and other organisations have been providing humanitarian aid to communities in vulnerable conditions due to the pandemic in the Amazon region. The coalition Wings of Emergency has provided over 100 tonnes of food and resources to several Indigenous communities in the Amazon and, last week, launched a factory to produce oxygen tanks in São Gabriel da Cachoeira, the city with the highest number of Indigenous Peoples in the country.
