Brazil is the 3rd country to lose freedom of expression the most in a decade

Brazil has been one of the three places in the world where freedom of expression has fallen the most in the last decade, and it is feared that the October elections will further escalate tensions in the country, especially for journalists.

The warning is part of the 2022 Article 19 Global Expression Report, an international organization that claims freedom of expression is a fundamental right. According to the ranking, only Afghanistan and Hong Kong, which saw an increase in Chinese control, reported a deeper crisis than the Brazilian crisis.

According to the organization, Brazil fell 38 points on the global freedom of expression ranking scale produced annually by the information-gathering agency from 161 countries.

“Data in the document show that from 2015 to 2021, the country dropped 58 places in the global freedom of expression rankings to reach 50 points and 89th, in 2010, the worst record since the start of the survey.” .

Bolsonaro’s government’s attacks on the press have alarmed the UN. Earlier this month, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michele Bachelet criticized the violence against journalists and environmentalists in Brazil.

“We have left a nation deemed limited in a very short time. This is one of the most shocking data in the entire world, not only because the decline itself but because it has occurred more sharply under a president’s leadership. Denise Dora, executive director of ARTICLE 19. “said.

“In Latin America, we are only behind Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Colombia and El Salvador,” he explains.

attacks

According to the organization, the number of attacks against journalists and the media reached its highest level since the 1990s in Brazil in 2021.

“There were 430 attacks on press freedom, more than double the number recorded in 2018, when Jair Bolsonaro was elected president.” “The stigma of the media and the polarization from the top of the Brazilian government has made it difficult for the media,” he said.

“The diagnosis reflects what journalists, communicators, and human rights defenders have often experienced under the Bolsonaro government. Note that less than a month ago, Bruno Araujo Pereira and Dom Phillips were killed in the Amazon. The mastermind of crime,” recalls Denise.

The institution emphasizes that in fieldwork, journalists are often selected, harassed and attacked rather than protected by their identities. The online harassment of Bolsonaro and his children is becoming more and more effective. “They are responsible for much of the online harassment that the media is exposed to,” the document says.

2022 elections

The report also highlights the election and the risk of escalating tensions in Brazil. According to the document, Bolsonaro “questions, without any basis, the integrity of the electoral system, that the last two elections have been rigged and that without reform the 2022 election will not be held.”

The document, released on Thursday, warns of a possible episode, such as an attack on the U.S. Congress in January 2021, when supporters of Donald Trump invaded the Capitol to block Joe Biden’s election certification.

“The 2022 presidential election will be a test of Brazilian democracy. As Bolsonaro continues to make statements like ‘Only God can take me out of the presidency,’ 2022 may reveal the true extent of how democracy has eroded under Jair Bolsonaro,” the document says.

incorrect information

Another finding of the entity is that “the hurricane of significant polarization and disinformation that developed online during the presidency of a man who completely disregarded scientific facts has had devastating effects during the pandemic”.

According to the group, more than 600,000 people have died in Brazil as a result of denial and misinformation, which includes the continued marketing of drugs with no proven efficacy against the coronavirus.

World

In the rest of the world, the organization’s analysis is also discouraging. According to the document, 80% of the world’s population (6.2 billion people) live with less freedom of expression today than they did a decade ago.

“This is a result of the growing intensification of climate change, armed conflict and mass displacement, which is silencing activists and communicators, depriving entire populations of access to basic information for their lives,” explains Denise.