“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”
“When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw” – Nelson Mandela
By Neela Ramsundar
I stand with the many others decrying the discrimination, desegregation, denial of rights and freedoms to students and citizens on the grounds of their vaccination status.
The Covid-19 pandemic began 20 months ago. Yet less than a year later, vaccines had gotten necessary approvals and were being administered to the people of the world. Without a doubt, that is incredibly fast for the rollout of a vaccine. And in my humble opinion, that is a major factor for the distrust of the various vaccines.
I have been following the latest developments and reading with interest everything new that is reported on these vaccines. From what I’ve been able to gather, scientists have not had the time to determine what, if any, harmful long-term effects of the vaccine might be. However, they are gauging the safety of the vaccine by postulating from available data based on the administration of similar types of vaccines in the past.
Initially touted as almost 100% effective against becoming infected, time has demonstrated that none of the different vaccines can boast that this is actually the case. While the vaccines remain our best protection against Covid-19, the scientists have made it clear that even vaccinated persons can experience “breakthrough infections” and they can also potentially infect others.
However, the benefit of the vaccine is that the likelihood of infection and transmissions to others is greatly reduced, so is the likelihood of contracting “long Covid,” needing hospitalisation or even dying from the Covid-19.
Hence the mantra: the risks of not being vaccinated outweighs the risks of being vaccinated. But it is because of the limits of the vaccines, face masks, hand washing, sanitisation measures etc., are all still needed to combat the spread.
So now that is abundantly clear that the vaccines are not providing that 100% shield that the world hoped for, what then makes it right to use the heavy hand of the law to separate our children from getting their education in schools and citizens from living life as they did pre-Covid19? If you are vaccinated, your protection is intact whether or not you come into contact with an unvaccinated person. Before Covid-19, the influenza virus killed millions worldwide each year, yet there was not a single law in this country segregating those with the flu from others.
I do understand that generally, the justification for “safe zones” (establishments where only vaccinated persons are allowed) are that the unvaccinated are the super spreaders of the Covid-19 virus, and if left unchecked, they will cause the hospital system to collapse from the sheer numbers that will need hospitalisation and intensive care.
However, I have a hard time accepting a vaccinated/unvaccinated apartheid as the answer. It goes against the very core of what I believe we as a society should find acceptable.
There is so much more we can do to persuade the undecided and those in doubt. An obvious solution is to keep vigorously adding to the hospital system to increase capacity. If the target is herd immunity of a certain percentage of the population, then a robust education drive is needed to get the population there.
With respect, the longwinded 11 am press conferences several times a week by our Ministry of Health and the bimonthly buffing from the Honourable Prime Minster just isn’t effective at achieving this. We need to do better in terms of public relations.
Think of it as if it were a general election we needed to win. For example, talk and engage with the people intensively at the community level; run repetitive short and effective ads on the radio, social media and TV utilising popular local personalities; have 24-hour free hotlines available where highly trained persons can answer any concerns citizens may have about the virus.
Now that enforced segregation of the vaccinated from the vaccinated is being slowly but surely rolled out, I have to wonder, if like all other forms of apartheid, is it likely that societal disorder and uproar might soon ensue? Time will tell. Be safe T&T.
Disclaimer:The contents of this article are for general informative purposes only and/or contain the opinions and/or thoughts of the writer only. It does not provide legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship with any reader. For legal advice on your specific situation, please contact an Attorney-at-Law of your choosing directly. Liability for any loss or damage of any kind whatsoever allegedly incurred a consequence of relying on content in this article is thus hereby excluded to the fullest extent permitted by law.
Commentary: Stop the Vaccinated/Unvaccinated Apartheid
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”
“When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw” – Nelson Mandela
I stand with the many others decrying the discrimination, desegregation, denial of rights and freedoms to students and citizens on the grounds of their vaccination status.
The Covid-19 pandemic began 20 months ago. Yet less than a year later, vaccines had gotten necessary approvals and were being administered to the people of the world. Without a doubt, that is incredibly fast for the rollout of a vaccine. And in my humble opinion, that is a major factor for the distrust of the various vaccines.
I have been following the latest developments and reading with interest everything new that is reported on these vaccines. From what I’ve been able to gather, scientists have not had the time to determine what, if any, harmful long-term effects of the vaccine might be. However, they are gauging the safety of the vaccine by postulating from available data based on the administration of similar types of vaccines in the past.
Initially touted as almost 100% effective against becoming infected, time has demonstrated that none of the different vaccines can boast that this is actually the case. While the vaccines remain our best protection against Covid-19, the scientists have made it clear that even vaccinated persons can experience “breakthrough infections” and they can also potentially infect others.
However, the benefit of the vaccine is that the likelihood of infection and transmissions to others is greatly reduced, so is the likelihood of contracting “long Covid,” needing hospitalisation or even dying from the Covid-19.
Hence the mantra: the risks of not being vaccinated outweighs the risks of being vaccinated. But it is because of the limits of the vaccines, face masks, hand washing, sanitisation measures etc., are all still needed to combat the spread.
So now that is abundantly clear that the vaccines are not providing that 100% shield that the world hoped for, what then makes it right to use the heavy hand of the law to separate our children from getting their education in schools and citizens from living life as they did pre-Covid19? If you are vaccinated, your protection is intact whether or not you come into contact with an unvaccinated person. Before Covid-19, the influenza virus killed millions worldwide each year, yet there was not a single law in this country segregating those with the flu from others.
I do understand that generally, the justification for “safe zones” (establishments where only vaccinated persons are allowed) are that the unvaccinated are the super spreaders of the Covid-19 virus, and if left unchecked, they will cause the hospital system to collapse from the sheer numbers that will need hospitalisation and intensive care.
However, I have a hard time accepting a vaccinated/unvaccinated apartheid as the answer. It goes against the very core of what I believe we as a society should find acceptable.
There is so much more we can do to persuade the undecided and those in doubt. An obvious solution is to keep vigorously adding to the hospital system to increase capacity. If the target is herd immunity of a certain percentage of the population, then a robust education drive is needed to get the population there.
With respect, the longwinded 11 am press conferences several times a week by our Ministry of Health and the bimonthly buffing from the Honourable Prime Minster just isn’t effective at achieving this. We need to do better in terms of public relations.
Think of it as if it were a general election we needed to win. For example, talk and engage with the people intensively at the community level; run repetitive short and effective ads on the radio, social media and TV utilising popular local personalities; have 24-hour free hotlines available where highly trained persons can answer any concerns citizens may have about the virus.
Now that enforced segregation of the vaccinated from the vaccinated is being slowly but surely rolled out, I have to wonder, if like all other forms of apartheid, is it likely that societal disorder and uproar might soon ensue? Time will tell. Be safe T&T.
Copyright © 2021 Neela Ramsundar, LL.B (HONS), L.E.C is a Civil Litigation Attorney at Law & Certified Mediator.
Disclaimer: The contents of this article are for general informative purposes only and/or contain the opinions and/or thoughts of the writer only. It does not provide legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship with any reader. For legal advice on your specific situation, please contact an Attorney-at-Law of your choosing directly. Liability for any loss or damage of any kind whatsoever allegedly incurred a consequence of relying on content in this article is thus hereby excluded to the fullest extent permitted by law.