Bolsonaro bashes WHO for “encouraging” children to masturbate

Fact-checking agency Aos Fatos reports that President Jair Bolsonaro has made at least 953 false or misleading statements in his first 484 days in office — an average of nearly two per day. The most recent of these declarations was among the most jaw-dropping: Mr. Bolsonaro accused the World Health Organization (WHO) of encouraging masturbation in children. Some of his closest allies, such as advisor Arthur Weintraub — brother of Education Minister Abraham Weintraub — shared the president’s post on social media. After the online backlash, Mr. Bolsonaro deleted his tweet.

Mr. Bolsonaro apparently misinterpreted a 2010 report by the German Federal Center of Education. The article, however, addressed parents and not children, as the president had suggested. This is not the first time the Brazilian leader has warped information from the WHO. Last month, the president shared falsehoods about WHO head, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

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