Brazil's right-wing President Bolsonaro says he is taking Trump's favourite drug hydroxychloroquine to tackle his coronavirus and already 'feels a lot better'
Brazil's president Jair Bolsonaro last night revealed he is taking hydroxychloroquine to treat his coronavirus infection and claimed it was making him 'a lot better'.
Hours after announcing his positive test result, Bolsonaro showed off footage of himself taking a dose of the anti-malaria drug - which is touted by him and Donald Trump but has not been proven effective against Covid-19.
Bolsonaro was tested after suffering a fever and muscle aches, but insisted yesterday that he felt 'perfectly well' and credited the improvement to his doses of the drug.
'Today I'm a lot better, so certainly it's working. We know today there are other remedies that can help fight the coronavirus,' said Bolsonaro, 65.
'We know none of them have their efficacy scientifically proven, but I'm one more person for whom this is working. So I trust hydroxychloroquine. And you?'
Brazil's president Jair Bolsonaro holds up a dose of hydroxychloroquine last night as he claimed the unproven drug was helping his recovery from a coronavirus infection
Bolsonaro, 65, downed the dose with a glass of water to treat a virus which he has previously downplayed as a 'little flu'Bolsonaro revealed his positive test result on Tuesday, telling reporters his fever had subsided before removing his mask as he stepped away.
The former army captain has come under severe criticism for raging against lockdowns and defying social distancing measures despite the soaring death toll.
Brazil has suffered one of the world's worst outbreaks with more than 1.6million cases and 66,741 deaths, both figures second only to the United States.
'I'm, well, normal. I even want to take a walk around here, but I can't due to medical recommendations,' Bolsonaro said yesterday.
The president had told supporters on Monday that he had been tested at a hospital and that an X-ray showed his lungs were 'clean'.
Yesterday he said he had cancelled a visit to the north-east a trip but will continue working via videoconference and receive visitors to sign official documents.
Bolsonaro's decision to champion the use of hydroxychloroquine had put him at odds with two successive health ministers, who both left their jobs in April and May.
Leandro Consentino, a political scientist at a Sao Paulo university, said Bolsonaro would 'take advantage of the illness to advertise for chloroquine'.
'He's going down a path of trying to indicate to his base of support that Covid-19 is just a little flu', Consentino said.
However, political scientist Mauricio Santoro of the State University of Rio de Janeiro said Bolsonaro's infection was a 'blow to his credibility'.
'It will be seen as another example of the failure of his coronavirus response,' Santoro argued.
Bolsonaro has frequently mingled with crowds of supporters in defiance of social distancing rules and without wearing a mask.
The 65-year-old has said that his history as an athlete would protect him from the virus and that it would be nothing more than a 'little flu' if he were to contract it.
Bolsonaro has repeatedly visited hospital since taking office, requiring several operations to repair his intestines after being stabbed on the campaign trail in 2018.
Bolsonaro supporter Silas Ribeiro said on the streets of Rio that the president is correct in saying the dangers of the virus have been exaggerated.
'Our president is a popular man. He is showing that he isn't afraid to die,' said Ribeiro, 59. 'He is going to have health and get through this sickness.'
Speaking near recently reo-pened shops in Rio, Wesley Morielo said he hoped Bolsonaro's sickness would prompt him to reassess his stance.
'I think everything he said before, of not giving importance to Covid-19, came back against him,' said Morielo, a 24-year-old student.
Over the weekend, the Bolsonaro celebrated America's Independence Day at close quarters with the US ambassador to Brazil and other aides.
The U.S. Embassy said on Twitter that Ambassador Todd Chapman is not showing any symptoms but would be tested.
Bolsonaro tested negative three times in March after meeting Donald Trump in Florida. Members of his delegation to the US later reported becoming infected.
Bolsonaro's downplaying of 'the 'little flu'
Jair Bolsonaro, sometimes known as 'the Trump of the Tropics,' has sparked controversy for his brash dismissals of coronavirus.
At the end of March he referred to the lockdowns being imposed by regional governors and mayors as a 'scorched earth' policy.
'Our lives have to go on. Jobs must be kept... We must, yes, get back to normal,' he said in a speech which sparked furious protests.
At the time Brazil had recorded 2,200 infections and 46 deaths. Today, the country has 1.6million cases and 65,487 deaths.
The 60-year-old president - who has called the virus 'the sniffles' - has continued to head out to rallies and greet supporters by shaking their hands.
Asked on one occasion about the high death toll, Bolsonaro said: 'So what? I'm sorry, but what do you want me to do?'
Over Easter he contradicted his own health ministry's advice by going out to buy doughnuts.
'No one will hinder my right to come and go,' Bolsonaro said.
The president has claimed that younger people have nothing to fear from the disease and that even older people - such as himself - have nothing to worry about.
'With my history as an athlete, if I were infected with the virus I would have no reason to worry. I would feel nothing, or it would be at most just a little flu.' Bolsonaro said.
Bolsonaro has sacked two health ministers during the pandemic and repeatedly called for the country to reopen despite local administrations committing to keep their lockdowns in place.
The president has argued that the economic hardship caused by locking down the country is far graver than the disease itself.
'People are going to die, I'm sorry,' the president said in March. 'But we can't stop a car factory because there are traffic accidents.'
In June he announced that he was considering whether to pull Brazil out of the World Health Organisation, calling it a 'partisan political organisation.' 
Brazil's president Jair Bolsonaro yesterday revealed he has tested positive for coronavirus - but dismissively removed his mask as he told reporters he felt 'perfectly well'
Bolsonaro said he was 'well, normal', adding that he 'even wants to take a walk around here, but can't due to medical recommendations'
Bolsonaro has previously referred to the coronavirus as a 'little flu' and railed against the WHO's advice
Bolsonaro took a few steps back from reporters before removing his mask at the impromptu press conference
Bolsonaro stepped back from the reporters and removed his lapel microphone before taking his mask off
Bolsonaro, a former army captain, has previously said that his history as an athlete would protect him from the virus, and that it would be nothing more than a 'little flu'
Bolsonaro in Brasilia on Tuesday speaking to reporters about testing positive for the virus
Bolsonaro has come under severe criticism after downplaying the virus as a 'little flu' and continuing to ignore social distancing advice even as the crisis escalates.
The president has lambasted regional governors for imposing lockdown measures against his wishes which he says will be more damaging than the virus itself.
Asked on one occasion about the high death toll, Bolsonaro said: 'So what? I'm sorry, but what do you want me to do?'.
In recent days he has watered down a law that would require citizens to wear face masks in public.
On Friday he vetoed several articles of the bill such as those requiring employers to supply masks for their staff and another mandating that authorities should provide masks for 'economically vulnerable people'.
On Monday, Bolsonaro also vetoed sections requiring masks be worn in prisons and another obliging businesses to provide information on how to wear masks properly.
Some states have already made the wearing of face-coverings mandatory, but this was the first such law on a national level.
Since Bolsonaro was in a private residence at the meeting with the US ambassador, he did not break the new law - but that did not spare him from an avalanche of criticism online for not providing a good example.
Brazil's president Jair Bolsonaro has tested positive for coronavirus, he revealed today
Jair Bolsonaro has repeatedly downplayed the severity of the virus and ignored social distancing rules - seen here waving to supporters on Sunday
Bolsonaro attending a rally on horseback with his supporters outside the presidential palace in Brasilia at the end of May
Bolsonaro has frequently made light of the virus and ignored social distancing etiquette (pictured: on horseback during a rally on May 31)
Bolsonaro's government also tried to remove the majority of virus statistics from its official website, before a judge ordered him to reinstate them.
The latest figures show 1,668,589 confirmed cases and 66,741 deaths in Brazil, the second-highest tallies in the world.
The last seven days alone have seen more than 250,000 new cases and 7,147 deaths, more than many countries have suffered in total.
It is also feared that the true toll is far higher because of a lack of widespread testing in Latin America's largest country.
Brazil, however, is the sixth most populous country in the world and its per capita deaths are not as high as in seom European countries.
Belgium has the most coronavirus deaths per million people, followed by the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Sweden and France. Brazil is tenth on that list.
Demonstrators take part in a protest against Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro as they hold images of people who died from the coronavirus disease
Demonstrators take part in a protest against Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro at Paulista avenue in Sao Paulo, Brazil July 4
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