SEGURIDAD INTERNACIONAL
PÁGINA 31
THE MORALITY OF MANDATORY COVID-19 VACCINATION AND ITS SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CONSEQUENCES POR: EDNA SOFÍA CASTAÑEDA HERNÁNDEZ INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS STUDENT AT UNIVERSIDAD ANÁHUAC MÉXICO, IN 6TH SEMESTER. EMAIL: EDNA.CASTANEDAHE@ANAHUAC.MX
Abstract: This article analyzes the current debate around the morality of mandatory COVID-19 vaccination and its social and political consequences around the globe. Explains the arguments that experts use to justify the righteousness of mandatory COVID-19 vaccination, stating that it is the moral thing to do as it grants the safety of everyone. Mandatory vaccination has also caused political and civil unrest in Canada and the United States. People claim that vaccination should be a personal choice and that making it mandatory violates human rights. Both postures will be stated and analyzed through examples of implemented measures worldwide. Key words: covid-19, anti-vax, morality, pandemic, human rights, fines, policies, liberty.
The world is constantly changing, which is part of our human
history. Humanity has seen civilizations fall, animals go extinct, the rise of empires, the change of governments, and the appearance of new diseases. Historically, mankind has dealt with various pandemics that have caused significant devastations to our human civilization. First, the Bubonic Plague killed around one-third of the population of Europe in the fourteenth century. Second, the Spanish Flu pandemic eliminated approximately 50 million people in 1918. Third, the COVID-19 pandemic has killed around 5.91 million people (Albrecht, 2022). When COVID-19 first appeared, there was a specific relief that new technologies, experiences, and medicines would diminish the extent of this pandemic, and the world would recover much faster than the way it had occurred before. Hence, the scientific research had to develop a safe and effective vaccine in record time, and by
INSTAGRAM: EBSOFICHR
December 2020, the first vaccines were delivered. Thus far, studies have shown that COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective and can diminish the pandemic (Albrecht, 2022). However, as COVID-19 cases continued to grow, so did the opposition to its vaccine. Social media, television, and influencers presented faulty statements around the vaccination. The arguments are that the booster injection can alter DNA, that the Government is injecting microchips into people to control and monitor them, and that it can negatively impact fertility. On the other hand, some individuals oppose them due to religious beliefs, false claims, and ignorance (Albrecht, 2022). The opposition to vaccination, especially the COVID-19 vaccine, has become more organized and is affecting the health of many people. In addition, pre-existing societal tensions usually fuel the movement. As stated by Dr. Larrson (2022): “The way that anti-vaccination movements harness popular anger has to do with what tension is already underlying in society. The leaders often recognize a preexisting tension, they want to get rid of vaccines, so they use that tension to do that… there’s a serious anti-vaccine movement in eastern Europe. We’re seeing very polarized politics across a lot of the world, and it's being funneled and directed actively by individuals who lead the anti-vax movement. They’re using those divisions on purpose (Blackall, 2022).” The Anti-vaccine movement has grown more than before due to the internet and social media.
ANÁHUAC GLOBAL REVIEW
