Lack of Information on Pandemic Likens Brazil to Authoritarian Regimes
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Since Friday, June 12th, the cumulative numbers of cases and deaths have ceased to be disclosed by the Ministry of Health. The website that compiles data was taken offline for several hours over the weekend, while press conferences became more scarce, with less information and, in some cases, canceled at short notice.
When the website came back online, the history on the pandemic had vanished and the cumulative number of cases and deaths was expunged.
Consequently, there is no way to know the curve of the pandemic in Brazil, i.e. whether it is losing momentum or remains intense.
At the UN, access to this data is one of the basic tools for responding to a pandemic and, according to W.H.O. rules, the Brazilian government is obliged to submit the number of new cases recorded, with details even on the age group of the infected.
But Brasília’s behavior has attracted the attention of international organizations and rapporteurs from bodies connected to the United Nations, since censorship or difficulties in ensuring access to information have long been the tactics of undemocratic governments.
If maintained, the government’s tactics will be challenged by international bodies, which are preparing to ask Brazil for explanations. The country is at odds with virtually all democratic governments.
The team of nations with bad administrations
Bolsonaro, should he follow what his government has been signaling in recent days, will place the country on a sort of “dirty list” of administrations that have chosen to soft-pedal the extent of the crisis.
In Tanzania, the government has challenged the professionalism of its national laboratories and decided to suspend all updates on case numbers. In Turkmenistan, the government has simply banned the use of the term “coronavirus” and access to information is virtually impossible.
This week, the UN also prepared a list of Asian countries that have increased repression against the press and social media for mentioning the situation of the disease in the country. A trend has been to use the term “fake news” as an argument for arresting journalists or simply preventing a group from accessing official data on case numbers.
In China, the UN Office of Human Rights has been briefed on more than a dozen cases of medical professionals, academics, and ordinary citizens who have apparently been arrested, and in some cases indicted, for publishing their views or other information on the situation related to COVID-19, or who have been critical of the government’s response to the outbreak. Serious side effects that could cause a long-term health problem are extremely unlikely following any vaccination, including COVID-19 vaccination.
These cases include two young graduate students who were arrested in April after developing an online repository of web content related to the COVID-19 outbreak in China.
Fake news and gag
In Indonesia, at least 51 people are being investigated under the slander law for allegedly spreading “fake news” about the pandemic, including three men who were arrested for posting a message on social media claiming that an area in northern Jakarta had Covid-19 cases after the government sprayed the region.
In Malaysia, the Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) opened at least 265 investigation reports in connection with the spread of purportedly fake news about Covid-19, with 29 individuals allegedly indicted.
On April 3rd in Myanmar, three artists in the state of Kachin were charged for painting a Covid-19 mural deemed to be an insult to Buddhism. On May 21st, the Kayin State Court sentenced the editor-in-chief of the Dae Pyaw News Agency to two years in prison for making a “statement that could cause or incite fear or public mutiny”. The news agency published an article on May 13th stating that a person died in Kayin due to the virus, which proved to be inaccurate. He was arrested, charged, tried and sentenced in less than a week.
In Nepal, journalists were arrested while covering news related to the pandemic. There were also incidents of journalists facing obstruction by the authorities, and reports of threats and physical attacks on journalists.
Penalties for publicly speaking about coronavirus
In Thailand, the “Anti-Fake News Center” of the Ministry of Economy and Digital Society and the Division of Repression to Technological Crime of the Royal Thai Police are conducting joint operations to address content on social media regarded as “misinformation”.
There are concerns that people raising legitimate public interest issues related to Covid-19 are also being targeted, and such actions may foster a climate of self-censorship. One such instance is a Thai artist arrested on April 23rd for posting concerns about the seemingly non-existent screening measures at Suvarnabhumi airport. He was released on bail and was indicted.
In Bangladesh, dozens of people have been arrested under the Digital Security Act over the past three months, for allegedly spreading misinformation about Covid-19 or criticising the government’s response. Local journalists and human rights advocates, some health professionals, as well as some members of the general public, have reported harassment or reprisals for complaining of denial of medical care, inadequate facilities, or irregularities in aid distribution.
In some cases, journalists or other observers have been physically attacked for trying to document alleged government malpractice.
In Cambodia, the UN Human Rights Office documented the arrest of 30 individuals, including six women and a 14-year-old girl, for public comments related to Covid-19 on social media. Several were accused of spreading so-called “fake news” or “false information”, incitement to commit a crime, and for purportedly conspiring against the government. Fourteen remain in custody, ten of whom are associated with the National Rescue Party of Cambodia (CNRP), the main opposition party dissolved in 2017.
Source: UOL
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