Sebastião Salgado, 78, famous for his black and white photos immortalizing the planet's natural treasures, claimed in a video on Instagram that Brazil was living
"a dramatic moment in its history"
as the decisive ballot approached. sunday.
According to him, the government of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro
"has been responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Brazilians because of its suicidal policy in the face of Covid-19"
, an allusion to the more than 680,000 lives mowed down by the virus. in the country.
Read alsoIn Brazil, the “gutter war” of Bolsonaro and Lula
"
The government has massively destroyed the Amazon rainforest
, without respecting indigenous communities and other minorities
," he added, also castigating the
outgoing president's
"brutal" policy.
Sebastião Salgado's latest exhibition,
Amazônia
, which was on view in 2021 in Paris before being seen in several other world capitals, showed his love for the Amazon, a region that has seen deforestation and fires rise sharply. under Jair Bolsonaro.
In his post on Instagram, the photographer also praised the record of ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva when he was in power, from 2003 to 2010.
“He transformed Brazil into a real developing country, a country globally recognized
,” he said.
Today, we are divided, we no longer speak to our loved ones.
We must vote for the reunification of Brazil and for democracy”.
A favorite in the polls, Lula is also supported by legends of Brazilian song like Caetano Veloso, or pop stars like Anitta and Ludmilla.
Jair Bolsonaro, for his part, has seen footballing superstar Neymar come out in his favour.