Brazilian mayor censured over 'racist' coronavirus ban

Fredson de Silva, mayor of Pau d'Arco, issued decree locking down only indigenous people

Local authorities in the Brazilian Amazon have been accused of racism after locking down a string of indigenous villages and banning indigenous people from entering a local town because of a coronavirus outbreak.

Federal prosecutors on Friday called for the mayor of Pau D'Arco in the Amazon state of Para - population 6,000 - to revoke the decree, which he said had been issued to protect public health.