Anti-vax protests grow
ANTI-VACCINATION conspiracy theories — sickeningly devoid of scientific backing — that began echoing on social media ever since the vaccines designed to build immunity against Covid-19 were rolled out have been gradually gaining momentum in the West. The unfounded theories are dangerous and have, worryingly, snowballed into ugly and disruptive forms of protests in Europe and North America in the past few months. It is a matter of concern that the backlash against the rising tide of mandates, such as vaccine passports for mobility, has manifested itself as threatening postures.
Though the anti-vaxxers’ numbers are relatively small, even as over 80 per cent of the eligible populations in these countries are fully inoculated, their nuisance value is high. For, they are spilling out into streets of Canada, the US, the UK, France, Italy, Spain, Austria etc., hitting normal life and targeting political leaders and public health officials responsible for carrying out vaccination drives as also those implementing the government orders, such as cops, restaurant and school staff or cross-border officials. The latest raucous dissent to garner global traction is one in Canada in protest against the vaccine mandate for truckers crossing the border to the US.
The rebellious stance is unacceptable as it is baseless or hinged on half-truths. India, too, has its share of disbelievers. Other than sporadic incidents of disorderly behaviour, their protest is marked by hesitancy to inoculation. This reluctance is apparent more for the second and booster doses. However, it is understandable that the global resentment could be stemming partly from fatigue of the pandemic curbs and the resultant economic slide. It can be conceded that the fast-tracked Covid shots lack the required rigorous testing and trials and foolproof evidence of efficacy. The vaccine challengers would have gained sympathy if they had raised concerns as responsible citizens at proper forums and drawn data-based conclusions. The onus is on the authorities and the scientific community to silence the naysayers by underlining the key role played by vaccines in saving lives.
