By Sir Ronald Sanders
(The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States and the Organization of American States. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London and Massey College in the University of Toronto. The views expressed are entirely his own)
The question has to be asked. Are some people in Caribbean countries becoming the architects of their own and the region’s destruction?
There is clearly an organised anti-vaccination campaign throughout the region. Who is behind the campaign is unclear, but what is evident is that opposition political parties and criminal elements in Caribbean societies are taking advantage of the anti-COVID-19 vaccination sentiment for their own narrow purposes.
So, while great strides had been made in countries such as Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados and Guyana to suppress the coronavirus and curb its spread through a vigorous inoculation programme against the pandemic, that march is now being halted.
The process, that was taking many Caribbean countries to ‘herd’ or ‘community’ immunity, is now being derailed. This means that the countries, particularly tourism dependent ones, that were heading toward opening their borders and recovering their economies with the obvious attendant benefits for their populations, will now be setback, if not gravely reversed.
The people of Caribbean countries where this situation takes hold will have no one to blame but themselves. Vaccines now exist, and are available, for most countries to inoculate 70 per cent of their adult population. The provision by the government of the United States of Pfizer vaccines, suitable for children, to six CARICOM countries has enhanced their capacity to immunize their people against the lethal coronavirus. The six countries that are recipients of Pfizer doses so far are: Antigua and Barbuda (17,500); Bahamas (397,000); Barbados (70,200); St Kitts-Nevis (11,700); St Vincent and the Grenadines (35,100) and Trinidad and Tobago (305,370). Other Caribbean countries will also be beneficiaries as soon as they settle requirements for storing and distributing the vaccines safely.
The US donation fortifies supplies of vaccines that have been delivered through the COVAX facility, administered by the World Health and Pan American Health Organisations, as well as gifts from India, Russia and China to several countries.
Caribbean countries, principally Antigua and Barbuda and Barbados, enjoyed great success in the early stage of the inoculation programme. But this initial enthusiasm by people who recognised the value of being immunised from a deadly disease, concealed the anti-vaccination movement that had already taken hold.
Oddly, the success of many Caribbean governments and health authorities in suppressing the coronavirus and curbing its spread, also contributed to the propaganda that the virus would not kill, and that greater risk exists from inoculation. The anti-vaxxers seized upon the containment of the disease as some sort of warped evidence that it was better to contract it than to prevent it.
Consequently, there has been a recent resurgence of COVID-19 infections throughout the Caribbean. It is so bad in Martinique, a French island neighbouring St Lucia and Dominica, that the authorities have locked down the country again and asked all tourists to leave. While Martinique can afford this drastic step because it is politically and administratively a part of France which gives it budgetary support, should CARICOM countries take similar action, they would immediately suffer even further economic decline. This time, economic recovery, and a return to any semblance of normal life, would be extremely prolonged with long-term unemployment and severely reduced social welfare programmes. Many economies would simply collapse.
Additionally, the strain on health systems, that are only now being eased from COVID-19 cases, would intensify beyond their capacity to cope. Further, other non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes, hypertension, kidney failure and cancer, would take many lives as resources are diverted again to persons infected by the coronavirus.
Anyone who doubts these real possibilities should check the situation in parts of the US where medical resources are much greater than any CARICOM country. For example, data from the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control shows that hospital occupancy in Horry County is at 93.3%. The report reveals that 94 out of 98 beds in intensive care units are occupied, and 44 of them are COVID-19 patients. There are also 34 patients that are currently on ventilators, and 21 of them are COVID-19 sufferers.
According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), COVID-19 cases are rising in nearly 90 percent of jurisdictions in the US, with outbreaks in areas with low vaccination rates.
Politics played a huge part in the anti-vaccination campaign in the US, started by former President Donald Trump. It was adopted by right-wing religious and political groups who have exposed their own congregations and supporters to illness and death by encouraging gatherings of unmasked persons at which they rail against vaccinations.
Political parties in some CARICOM countries have taken a page from the Trump playbook. They have jumped on the anti-vaccine sentiment in the expectation that protests and marches against inoculation would galvanize a mass movement to topple governments. They have gone as far as to encourage violations of the law and confrontations with Police. In St Vincent, this emboldening of lawlessness resulted in a supporter of an opposition political party, hurling a stone at the head of 75-year-old Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves that wounded him but could have killed him.
Political parties that irresponsibly align themselves with the anti-vaccination campaign, particularly to violate the law and confront Police carrying out their role to protect the wider citizenry, are playing with fire. Not only are they exposing people to disease and death, they are also risking killing economies which, even if their political actions help to topple governments, will leave them with countries so ruined that the majority of their populations will never forgive them.
COVID-19 remains a threat to human life as great as atrocities resulting from terrorism or war. The fact that unlike leprosy, the disease is not obvious until it has ravaged its victims, only hides its lethal effects.
All leaders of Caribbean societies, including politicians who want power, should put the well being of their peoples and their countries first.
6 responses to “Are people in the Caribbean becoming architects of their own destruction?”
It’s called the influence of American Cable News. All the Govermments have to be smart in dealing with health and economics at the same time. From personal experiences, if this variant takes hold in the Caribbean, I don’t know of one country that has the resources to handle it.
What variant how does one rest for variants when the pcr test only shows positive and negative results..also the inventor of the pcr test also stated that rather test is unreliable in correctly diagnosing negative or positive results…also why are we sweeping under the rug Israel and Gibraltar who have 80 and 100 % full vaccination..why are they in such an epidemic now with severe cases of covid?..all these mask wearing and hand sanitizing and washing along with these dumb ass useless vaccines is what causing these outbreaks…only nature and your natural immune system can get rid of this man made disaster
Stop pushing your sinister agenda and make the public have more understanding about this suspect pandemics. As a professional gentleman you are,you must know how and why education is a priority to disappear possible confusing affairs at the last moment.
The W.H.O since the beginning was idling right and left….make the WELL THINKING PEOPLE get more doubt than understanding,is well know (as everybody was getting from many government around the globe) is just limited their freedom, passing nasty and oppressive law’s make their population feel and be as prisoner…many media acting as a PROPAGANDERS (I can told you that because I was working in the military services and I was trained for this kind of war fare)…if your government or the O.N.U was acting in a good faith,why the world bank have it in his manifesto THE PROJECT the beginning and end? The info is their IS PUBLIC… so,a intelligent man as your are sir,please, let’s your own people alone, let’s their decide if wanna live or wanna die as whatsoever their be…. take out the state emergency….be more transparent and you will see the people will respond to your geverment agenda with the expectations your gentleman want.
About the economic impact,the world is doom,all the countries do tourism’s,their have the future grim…you know that but,we need to reinvent the way to attract more sustainable income,god bless you sir and have it a beautiful rest of the day.
The Gods of the Karabean are remembering their roots and saying no to all enemies of Mother Earth.
Why arn’t the SPECIALISTS touting eating properly and building the immune system but they are trying to build our defences with their man made injection.
They are also ignoring the information put out by other virologist (experts) and pushing their agenda. Caribbean people are blessed with sunlight (VITAMIN D)
all year round and the sea to clear our viral load but yet we are following the dictates of those misleading countries there is no on size fit all in this situation.
Mr. ambassador please give us some credit for charting our own path in this situation we are more intelegent than you think.
Reading these replies, the Caribbean is heading for disaster, and as the author said disaster of our making because we choose to believe nonsense rather than science.