Latin America continues to cope with coronavirus

BOGOTA, Colombia The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Tuesday that economic activity in Latin America and the Caribbean will fall by 5.2% in 2020 due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Some governments are ignoring the World Health Organization’s warnings on the need for social distancing and seeing growing figures in cases and deaths. All numbers below are compiled according to data Tuesday from U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University in the state of Maryland. Chile Sebastian Pinera’s government has drawn criticism after Health Minister Jaime Manalich said deaths caused by coronavirus are counted as "recovered” cases. "We have 898 patients who are no longer contagious, who are not a source of contagion for others, and we count them as recovered. These are the people who have completed 14 days of diagnosis or who have unfortunately died," Manalich said Sunday. Manalich said including the deceased with "recovered" patients was advised by "international experts.” Officials announced Chile would start handing out certificates to patients who have recovered from the virus that will exempt them from quarantines. That occurred a few days after the government provoked outrage when it introduced a bill to release 1,300 low-risk prisoners from overcrowded prisons to serve the remainder of their sentences under house arrest. The proposed amendment would apply to inmates convicted of human rights violations under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, which prompted a fierce backlash from opposition lawmakers. Chile has 7,525 confirmed cases of the virus and 92 deaths. Brazil Latest health statistics said there are 23,955 confirmed coronavirus cases but the number of infections could exceed 313,000, according to a study by the University of Sao Paulo (USP) and the University of Brasilia (UnB) -- figures more than 15 times higher than officially stated. Experts say if the projected number of underreported cases were included in the official count, Brazil would fall behind only the U.S., which tests 8,866 people per million, while Brazil tests 296 per million. Minister of Health Luiz Henrique Mandetta said the peaks of the disease will be seen in May and June in Brazil, while President Jair Bolsonaro said Sunday the virus "is already leaving." The death toll in Brazil is at 1,361. Venezuela Nearly 6,000 Venezuelans who could not guarantee their survival during the lockdown in Colombia have returned to Venezuela in the last 10 days through a humanitarian corridor set up on the border. Nicolas Maduro's government says the country has the capacity to receive more than 15,000 citizens returning to Venezuela and have sent planes to pick up stranded nationals in different countries. Since April 4, the government has forced returnees to stay at least 14 days in makeshift shelters in the state of Tachira where health and isolation conditions have not been disclosed. The country recorded nine deaths, and 189 cases as of Tuesday. Ecuador President Lenin Moreno announced a new economic package to help the country stay afloat that included a National Humanitarian Emergency Fund that will ensure food, health and prevent a wave of local bankruptcies. One of the sources of the fund will be companies that generate income more than US$1 million, which will have to contribute 5% of profits in three monthly payments. "From companies to companies, we will prevent the small producers from going bankrupt and no one will be left without a job," he said last weekend. However, the initiative was heavily criticized by the Chamber of Industries and Production. "We strongly reject the content of the announced measures aimed to affect the cash flow of the companies and workers," it said Sunday. In Ecuador, there are 7,529 confirmed cases and 355 deaths. Central America, Caribbean Mexico and Panama are the most affected countries in the region. With nearly 332 fatalities, Mexico has recorded the highest number of deaths in the region and 5,014 cases. In Panama, cases stand at 3,472 and 94 deaths. The death tolls in Honduras, Cuba, Costa Rica and El Salvador remain low at 26, 21, 3 and 6, respectively.