{"id":58422,"date":"2020-03-24T16:37:01","date_gmt":"2020-03-24T19:37:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/?p=58422"},"modified":"2020-03-29T11:13:04","modified_gmt":"2020-03-29T14:13:04","slug":"were-excluded-coronavirus-prevention-tips-forget-favelas-lacking-basic-sanitation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=58422","title":{"rendered":"‘We\u2019re Excluded’: Coronavirus Prevention Tips ‘Forget’ Favelas Lacking Basic Sanitation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Clique aqui para Portugu\u00eas<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

For the original article in Portuguese by Lola Ferreira published in Uol Not\u00edcias click here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

This is the third article<\/em> in what will be a spotlighted issue on RioOnWatch for the foreseeable future: the new coronavirus as it impacts Rio de Janeiro\u2019s favelas<\/a>. The series features both original RioOnWatch publications and those translated from other sources such as this one.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Washing your hands with soap and water or using hand sanitizer. These are simple steps to prevent the spread of coronavirus, yet they are impossible for a low-income portion of the population. Residents from two favelas in Rio de Janeiro, where open sewage and water shortages<\/a> are part of daily life, spoke to UOL<\/em> about their concerns relating to the spread of Covid-19.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Raull Santiago, 31, founder of Coletivo Papo Reto<\/a>, from the Complexo do Alem\u00e3o<\/a> favelas in Rio\u2019s North Zone<\/a>, unreliable access to clean drinking water is leaving the favelas\u2019 residents \u201cbehind\u201d in the fight against the virus.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEven before the pandemic, we had suffered from a long history of inequality. Many of us have never had daily access to running water and other basic rights. We don\u2019t just save water because of environmental concerns, we save it because we have to. Because we know that if we have water one day we might not have it again for a week,\u201d says Santiago.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He shares a house with five other people, including four children. There, the water only \u201cfalls\u201d (that is, becomes available from the tap) twice a week, and, on some days, the water pressure is very weak.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In a pandemic, when we\u2019re constantly told to wash our hands, how does one avoid getting sick?<\/a> Santiago says that he does whatever he can to prevent infection, but his family is exposed to vectors every day, and because they don\u2019t have the necessary access to water, he is very afraid.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe went to get the measles vaccine and we live at the top of the favela. In order to get down and back up, we had to take a kombi with 16 others\u2014old people, children, adults. We\u2019ve been trying to stay informed, save water, and wash our hands as much as possible. We\u2019re doing all we can to avoid the infection, because if one of us gets it, we all will. But now we have more doubts than certainty in terms of prevention for the family,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Santiago also points out that it\u2019s difficult to buy hand sanitizer. Not just because of the shortage reported by residents of wealthier areas, but because of the cost.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Prevention in the Favelas<\/b><\/h3>\n

In his opinion, the city and the state should be obliged to provide advice on preventing the disease, taking into account the plurality of Rio’s living conditions. \u201cWe need the government and health specialists to think about tips that can be used by people from favelas and peripheries.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAs things are now, we\u2019re being excluded, ignored in the reality of the spread of the virus in Brazil, because they are failing to consider the reality that we live in<\/a>, one of extreme inequality.\u201d \u2014 Raull Santiago, 31, founder of Coletivo Papo Reto<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Edimilson Migowski, an infectious disease specialist and professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ<\/a>), believes that the lack of basic sanitation in the favelas, coupled with the spread of coronavirus, will result in a \u201cvery serious\u201d situation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAccess to clean, drinkable water is fundamental to preventing any infectious disease. When you combine overcrowding, poor ventilation, and a lack of minimal living conditions, the risk of infectious disease increases,\u201d he explains.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Migowski emphasizes that there is no short-term solution besides trying to follow the preventative measures as much as possible. \u201cPeople living in high-risk areas, without sanitation, will have to double down their attention, more than anyone else. If it were possible to isolate yourself elsewhere that would be great, but we also know that that\u2019s nearly impossible,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Confirmed Cases of Coronavirus (Ministry of Health as of March 24<\/a>)<\/h3>\n