Brazilian Prez Bolsonaro ordered to pay compensation to journalist for derogatory remarks

Amidst criticism of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro due to a continuous surge in COVID-19 cases, a Sao Paulo court has ordered in favour of a journalist who sued him. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has been directed to pay compensation to a journalist for making derogatory remarks against her. The Sao Paulo court in its order said that Bolsonaro will have to pay 20,000 reais (about US$3,500) to Patricia Campos Mello, a reporter with the daily Folha De S. Paulo.

In February 2020, President Bolsonaro claimed that Campos Mello had offered sex to a source in exchange for negative information about him. On March 16, the judge ruled that the far-right leader had "damaged the honor of the complainant, causing moral damage."

Bolsonaro can appeal the decision.

It is to be noted that Campos Mello wrote several investigative stories on an organisation that slandered Bolsonaro's opponents on WhatsApp during his 2018 presidential campaign.

In January 2021, Eduardo Bolsonaro, a Brazilian congressman and the son of President Jair Bolsonaro, was ordered to pay 30,000 reais (US$5,600) in compensation for moral damage to Campos Mello. Eduardo Bolsonaro made a series of serious accusations against journalist Patrícia Campos Mello on the YouTube channel of Terça Livre. He claimed that Campos Mello had attempted to use sex to gain negative information about his father and tried to interfere with the 2018 presidential election. In response, Campos Mello sued the younger Bolsonaro for moral damages in a civil court and won. 

'A war is going on against the President'

President Bolsonaro is also facing the heat after the COVID-19 cases of Brazil does not seem to curb. In Brazil, more than 450,000 people have been killed. Intensive care units are 95% full. Fifteen other state capitals are on verge of collapse as well, with ICU occupancy over 90%. 

Recently, a Brazilian daily reported that hundreds of Brazilian business leaders and economists have slammed the country's highest leadership over ignoring science, encouraging crowds, hyping unproven treatments. In the report, the business leaders also asked for a new policy approach as the country is entering a critical phase of the coronavirus pandemic. 

In an interaction with the media, President Bolsonaro had said that a war is going on here against the him in the name of COVID. "It seems that people only die of Covid. The hospitals are 90% occupied. But we need to find out how many are from Covid and how many are from other illnesses," he said.

(Image Credits: AP)