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GENEVA, Sept. 4 (Reuters): A spokeswoman for the World Health Organization said on Friday that she does not expect widespread Covid-19 vaccines until the middle of next year, emphasizing the importance of rigorous controls on their effectiveness and safety.
“We do not expect to see widespread vaccination until the middle of next year,” spokeswoman Margaret Harris told reporters at a briefing in Geneva.
“This phase 3 should take longer because we need to see how truly protective the vaccine is and we also need to see how safe it is,” he added, referring to vaccine clinical trials.
In the meantime, AFP reported that China issued a fierce reprimand on Friday to UN experts who said a draconian national security law imposed on Hong Kong poses a serious risk to the city’s freedoms and violates international legal obligations.
Beijing has faced a barrage of criticism over the legislation, imposed in late June after pro-democracy protests rocked the semi-autonomous city last year.
The law, which criminalizes secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces, carries a maximum penalty of life in prison and has intimidated many protesters into silence.
In a letter released on Friday, UN special rapporteurs on human rights warned that parts of the legislation “appear to criminalize freedom of expression or any form of criticism” of China.
In usually strong language, China’s Foreign Ministry was quick to dismiss the allegations, saying the law “punishes an extremely small number and protects the absolute majority” in the financial center.
“Some people ignore the facts and maliciously slander the human rights situation in China … and crudely interfere in China’s internal affairs,” ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters.
“Stop meddling in the affairs of Hong Kong and China in any way.”
Hong Kong was thrown into chaos last year when pro-democracy protesters, furious at China’s alleged invasion of the city’s freedoms, clashed with police.
The unrest has calmed down thanks to coronavirus restrictions and the chilling effect of the security law, under which more than 20 people have been arrested, including a prominent media mogul.
The UN advisers’ letter, the first issued since the law covered the southern Chinese city, vigorously dissected the damage inflicted on the freedoms once enjoyed in Hong Kong, enshrined in an agreement made before the 1997 cession of the British. colonial rule back to China.
The security law “presents a serious risk that these fundamental freedoms and due process guarantees will be violated,” said the rapporteurs.
The letter warned that the legislation could “unacceptably violate the rights to freedom of opinion, expression and peaceful assembly.”
The rapporteurs urged that China “reconsider” the legislation and that a fully independent reviewer be appointed to ensure that it complies with China’s international human rights obligations.
They also raised concerns about one of the most controversial points in the law, which allows cases to be transferred from Hong Kong jurisdiction to mainland China, and warned that it could undermine the right to a fair trial.
The broadly worded law criminalized certain political speeches overnight, such as advocating sanctions against China or greater autonomy or independence for Hong Kong.
Attorneys for some of the more than 20 people arrested under the law so far say police are tracking historic actions by pro-democracy activists to bolster their cases.
The UN experts also expressed concern about the definition of terrorism in the national security law.
They warned that it extends to damage to physical property, such as transportation facilities, which goes far beyond the UN Security Council definition of terrorist conduct that aims to cause death or serious bodily injury.
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