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Among countries that have a democratic form of government, 43 percent fall into this category, in authoritarian states it is about 90 percent, according to Idea, which is a Stockholm-based intergovernmental organization that promotes democracy.
“Authoritarian regimes were expected to use the pandemic excuse to tighten control.” More surprising is that so many democracies have adopted measures that are problematic in terms of democracy and human rights, Secretary General Kevin Casas-Zamora told AFP.
Several of the measures it has also been introduced indefinitely. In several cases, democratic governments have limited information about COVID-19 to citizens, in several authoritarian cases the scope of corona outbreaks has been obscured.
“The risk is that governments get used to a new normal situation and therefore do not withdraw the anti-democratic measures,” Kevin Casas-Zamora wrote in a press release.
“Vaccines give people hope that life will return to normal, but we must also ensure that democratic norms are restored and strengthened when we emerge from the pandemic.”
India is that democracy It gets the worst rating when Idea has examined the crown’s restrictions from a human rights perspective. The country has taken problematic measures in nine of the 22 areas examined in the study.
When the spread of the infection took off in March, the country entered a giant quarantine on short notice and 1.3 billion people were forced to stay inside. Prime Minister Narendra Modi apologized in particular to the poorer sections of the population. The measures were necessary for the Indian health system to sustain itself, the motivation was. At the same time, however, freedom of movement, freedom of expression and freedom of the press were violated in the country, according to Idea.
Another country where fundamental rights have been undermined is Israel. The Tel Aviv government has faced protests against the shutdown of the company with excessive force and arrests, according to the report. Human rights groups have expressed concern about violations of Palestinian rights during the pandemic. Israel has also used the security service to track cases of Covid-19, which Idea says threatens personal integrity.
In Argentina, several people have been accused of misinformation about the corona pandemic, which according to Amnesty International, among others, can be seen as a violation of freedom of expression. The government’s infection tracking app is said to pose a risk to personal data protection and privacy.
Within the EU, five countries stand out: Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia.
According to Idea, the countries acting as part of a trend that began several years before the virus began to spread. A common characteristic is that already vulnerable groups in society are the most affected.
“Countries that were very authoritarian in most cases have become more authoritarian, while democracies that faced real challenges in maintaining the rule of law and fundamental human rights have faced increasing challenges,” said Kevin. Casas-Zamora to AFP.
Good examples are Norway, Finland and Iceland. From the point of view of democracy, countries have behaved in an exemplary manner during the pandemic.
