“Those who criticize the pandemic precautions, are waging a war against their own country…Other countries wouldn’t allow these sorts of publications even for one day. Those terrorist organizations, media, political organizations which are trying to demoralize our nation will be drowned in the hatred of our nation.” says President Erdoğan, after his Government received harsh criticisms from head of the main opposition party regarding their policy towards pandemic.
The political instrumentalization of the Covid-19 crisis in Egypt
25 April 2020, byAs of April 24, Egypt is reporting 3,659 coronavirus infections and 276 Covid-19 deaths. However, as this article shows, the government’s use of the crisis for its own political purposes casts doubt on the veracity of these figures.[NBN]
How South Korea flattened the curve, and who pays the bill
24 April 2020, byAs of April 19, South Korea is reporting 10,661 confirmed coronavirus cases and 234 Covid-19 deaths. The country has been widely praised for its relative success in flattening the infection curve and South Koreans rewarded President Moon Jae-in’s Democratic Party with a landslide victory last week. According to the Guardian, “Moon’s left-leaning Democratic party and its smaller affiliate won 180 seats in the 300-seat assembly – the biggest majority in the national assembly by any party since South Korea’s transition to democracy in 1987 – according to the Yonhap news agency. The conservative opposition United Future party and its smaller sister party won 103 seats. Turnout was 66.2%, higher than any parliamentary elections held in South Korea since 1992.”
At the same time, coronavirus remains prevalent in South Korea and the danger of new outbreaks are real. And while South Korea has succeeded in flattening the curse, it cannot avoid the global economic crisis that is escalating in its wake, as the Economist reports, “the IMF expects the South Korean economy will shrink by 1.2 per cent this year, down from an earlier forecast of 2.2 per cent growth.”
Viktor Orbán is Using the Coronavirus Emergency to Crush Minorities
24 April 2020, by ,In the last week of March, the Hungarian government gender reassignment, legislated jail terms for fake news, and put government stooges in control of theaters. Viktor Orbán’s administration has done all this in the name of the response to coronavirus — exploiting its emergency powers to silence dissent and demonize minorities.
“The health emergency could possibly end up having total control over our lives“
23 April 2020, by“As for the way out of the pandemic, I think all the premises exist, on a global scale, for better or for worse. There may be a turn to the left capable of radically challenging the model of society that has emerged over the past forty years; but there may also be, as I said, a new xenophobic and authoritarian wave: a permanent ‘state of emergency’ which is linked to increased social inequalities, where despair drives a search for scapegoats.”
The Pandemic Coronavirus COVID-19 and Disabled People
23 April 2020, byAddressing the three-fold issues facing disabled people of all ages
Covid 19: Greek government boasts hide reality
22 April 2020, byOn 22 April Greece had 2408 cases and 121 deaths from Coronavirus. Media coverage has tended to concentrate on how it has come out well from the crisis. Nevertheless it is also home to refugee camps where the situation is catastrophic, provoking strong protests by the refugees in them.
Governance and Social Conflict in a Time of Pandemic
22 April 2020, by ,On Monday March 29th, General Electric factory workers staged a protest against the thousands of layoffs announced by the company’s management, demanding the reconversion of production and asking a simple question: “If GE trusts us to build, maintain, and test engines which go on a variety of aircraft where millions of lives are at stake, why wouldn’t they trust us to build ventilators?”
Ireland flattens the curve, but socialist policies needed
22 April 2020, byThe Republic of Ireland has succeeded in “flattening the curve” of the coronavirus’ spread in relative terms over the last six week. The death toll is roughly on par with Denmark, far less than devastating hotspots in Western Europe. Although the Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Leo Varadkar has received the lion’s share of international praise, health care workers, trade unions, social movements, and the socialist left have had to push every step of the way. And as unemployment in Ireland races towards 20 percent, the question of who will pay for the crisis is looming large.
Lift the blockade against Cuba to strengthen the fight against Covid 19
21 April 2020, byThe Fourth International calls on all revolutionary, progressive and democratic forces to strengthen the struggle against the blockade of Cuba and to intensify solidarity with the Cuban people. We fully support the foreign aid provided by Cuban health workers. The only way out of the crisis is international solidarity and the development of internationalism among peoples.