Exploring the Coronavirus Crisis
SOCIAL PROTESTING PRE AND POST COVID-19
By Elma Berisha ‘Global Protest Wave of 2019’, is a term used to describe the unprecedented global phenomenon of prolonged anti-government mass protests occurring throughout 2019. From start to the end of “the year of street protests”, more than 60% of countries across the globe saw millions of people taking to the streets. On the surface, protests were about causes as widely diverse as the vast number of countries involved. Then the Covid-19 outbreak hit, which was first reported in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. As the Covid-19 virus spread across borders in early 2020, for a while, it seemed like the squares and streets had been deserted of anti-government protesters. In response to the coronavirus emergency crisis, most countries forced their populations into major lockdowns. Dramatic measures have ensued, among them closing borders, imposing curfews and travel restrictions, closing down public spaces and banning any social gatherings, including street protests. Hence, the immediate effect of Covid-19 was to quell the 2019 civil mobilization storm across the globe. More than nine months into the crisis, Covid-19 does not seem to have ended the ‘age of the mass protests’, quite the contrary. Pre Covid-19: The global tide of mass protesting Social unrest during 2019, from peaceful marches and minor skirmishes to violent clashes with the police, peaked not only in terms of scope and intensity, but also for its crowning achievements. Reminiscent of the Arab spring in the early 2010s, several old-timer heads of states were removed, most notably Abdelaziz Bouteflika in Algeria, Omar al-Bashir in Sudan and Saad Hariri in Lebanon. Driven by decades-old, unbearable socio-economic grievances and rampant corruption among the political leadership, these grassroots movements seemed unstoppable. The rising cost of living and a sense of being shut out of country’s economy have been among key underlying factors. A proposal to tax WhatsApp calls on the part of the Lebanese government sparked mass protests that in many ways have not been subdued. In numerous cases, the rise of prices for basic public services such as utilities, or lack of it due to governments’ state of bankruptcy or negligence, played a role in triggering protests. Popular protests were reignited in Egypt and in October 2019 street protests re-emerged in Syria. In the age of social media, with increased visibility access and the instantaneous information sharing, the protesters seem to inspire each other from one corner of the world to another. The prodemocracy demonstrations in Hong Kong acted in solidarity and support with the Catalonian protesters, exchanging messages of courage and tactics of resistance. Major protests took place in countries including the UK, Italy, Germany, Austria, New Zealand and more. Nationwide uprisings mark 2019 for France, with the Yellow Vest movement continuing to protest against Macron’s controversial pension scheme. Across the board, an overlap of protest reasons enlisted rallies against austerity programs and the demand for political freedom from direct and indirect political repression. In addition, concerns over eroded democracy via technology interference have played its role. At one point in October 2019, up to one million people took to London’s streets, according to organizers of the “People’s Vote march”, to demand a “final say” on Brexit. 37
