On
22 April 2021, Anguilla closed its borders following identification of “a
cluster of active Covid-19 cases.” This
appears not to have originated in a notorious gambling den and house of entertainment
for discriminating gentlemen who take pleasure from the presence of Venezuelan
ladies smuggled into Anguilla from nearby St Maarten under cover of darkness.
Government immediately acted under the Public
Health Act not only to close borders but to restrict movement outside the home,
and to order most business places to close.
These restrictions have gradually been loosened as the number of new
infections began to fall. The island is
scheduled to be completely open, and for all restrictions to be lifted by 28 May.
Part of the public health measures introduced
was the offering of 20,000 free AstraZeneca vaccinations donated by the British
people and government. The vaccine is up
to 80% effective at preventing infection, which is an incredibly good rate
among vaccines. It is 100% efficient at
preventing Covid-19 death.
Ministry of Health officials have explained
that the only guarantee we have of preserving ourselves from death or serious
illness from Covid-19 infection is to be vaccinated. Ideally, every person in Anguilla who can be
vaccinated should be vaccinated. We have
been told that if we can get at least 70% of the population vaccinated we may
benefit from so-called “herd immunity”.
This would mean that it will be difficult for the virus to circulate if
only 30% of the population is unvaccinated.
We have not yet achieved the minimum of 70%. The risk is that we will not be safe by the
time that the remainder of the 20,000 doses expire and must be thrown away.
Anguillians are as susceptible as people all
around the world to consuming the anti-vaccine propaganda that presently fills
social media. There are Anguillians who
publish on Facebook and Twitter their refusal to follow medical advice and get
the jab. Justifications follow the usual
conspiracy-theory, non-scientific ones.
These vary from, “I place my faith in God;” to “Vaccination
causes autism in children;” to “The vaccines are not fully tested and
are experimental;” to “I will not let them put poisons in my body;”
to ”All you need is sea-water baths to keep healthy.” And there are many more spurious excuses.
Some resisters say they are afraid of suffering
a blood clot that may be fatal. The estimated
4 in 1 million chance of suffering a blood clot after taking the vaccine is
less than the risk of a blood clot from using the contraceptive pill.[1] No one is suggesting the pill should be
abandoned as a result. There are some
minor side-effects, such as tenderness where the injection is given, headache,
or nausea. These side-effects are just
evidence that the body is processing the information given by the vaccine to
create a protective shield.
The AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccination is safe and
effective, despite the several unfounded conspiracy theories and misinformation
surrounding its use. Contrary to rumour,
the vaccine will not paralyse me, it has never made anyone infertile, and it
does not inject a microchip into my body.
The health risks of taking the vaccine are
miniscule in comparison with the harm that contracting the virus may
cause. Even if one survives infection by
Covid-19, the mounting evidence of Long Covid illnesses is growing. Long Covid is a range of symptoms that can
last weeks or months after first being infected. It can happen to anyone who has had Covid-19,
even if the illness was mild or they had no symptoms.
Research says that up to 10% of people infected
by Covid-19 get Long Covid. It can
happen to anyone, whether you are young, old, healthy, or have a chronic
illness. It does not matter whether your
natural resistance is high or low. In
addition to the usual Covid symptoms of fatigue, brain fog, loss of smell and
taste, shortness of breath, anxiety, fever, muscle pain, depression, headache,
and rapid heartbeat, Long Covid can affect your internal organs. You may get inflammation of the heart muscle,
lung related issues, severe kidney injury, hair loss, skin rashes, joint pain,
chest pain, sleep issues, dizziness on standing, a hard time with concentration
and memory. Long Covid symptoms may last
for three months or longer.
On
13 May 2021, the Minister of Health of Anguilla with approval of Executive
Council made the Public Health (Temporary Restriction on Movement of People
and Public Gatherings) (Step 2) Regulations 2021 under the Public Health
Act. This was the 49th set of
Regulations made by the Minister to protect Anguillians from the worst effects
of the infection since the pandemic was declared early in 2020. The Regulations are in force between 13-20
May. They may be the last one if no new
infections occur, or they may be replaced by updated Regulations.
The
temporary restrictions do not apply to the listed essential services or to
persons who must visit these essential service places. They also do not apply to visits between not
more than 12 friends or family members, or to visits to restaurants, places of
worship, or gyms, on condition all persons are vaccinated and there are not
more than 12 persons present. Each
restaurant and place of worship must keep a register or log of the names,
addresses, contact information, and vaccination code of each person
present. Government has explained in
press conferences that this log is for tracing purposes in the event of another
outbreak.
These
Regulations were greeted by an uproar from among the anti-vaccine
minority. The principal objection appears
to be that the vaccination qualification for going to church or to dine out in
a restaurant is discriminatory, and “contrary to my human rights.” Attempts by public health officials to point
out the selfish and dangerous nature of the continuing resistance by some
individuals to taking the vaccination have not succeeded in persuading the
vaccine hesitant to overcome their resistance and help the community to achieve
the minimum of 70% of the population to achieve herd immunity.
On
17 May, the Leader of the Opposition and of the Anguilla United Front political
party published a letter addressed to the Minister of Health expressing her
party’s general approval of the public health measures being taken by the
government. She supported government’s
efforts to ensure that as many persons as possible in Anguilla are
vaccinated. But she expressed “extreme
concern and wholehearted disagreement” with those aspects of the
Regulations which, as she put it, seek to deprive persons who are not fully
vaccinated from participating in society in the like manner as fully vaccinated
persons.
She
alleges that disparate treatment of fully vaccinated persons versus not fully
vaccinated persons in our small society has already created division,
disharmony, and tension among our people.
She claims it gives rise to discriminatory and punitive treatment
against persons who are not fully vaccinated.
She warns this could potentially erupt into negative and volatile
interactions across the island.
What
the letter boils down to is an objection to government’s policy that only
vaccinated persons may leave their homes to go to church or to dine out in a
restaurant, and there may not be more than 12 persons present at any one time,
and the church or restaurant must keep a confidential log of persons present.
In my view, the Leader of the Opposition’s
letter is disingenuous and subversive of the public health. It seeks to undermine the efforts of
government to encourage all persons in Anguilla to take the vaccine. It gives support to the Covid-deniers and
anti-vaxxers who circulate on social media memes, jokes, and propaganda against
both the existence of the virus and the benefits of vaccination.
We already have too many Anguillians who are
resisting this safe and effective protection against infection by the
virus. Government ministers are on the
radio nearly every day offering encouragement.
The Chief Medical Officer and the Permanent Secretary Health spend their
time on the radio giving the facts about vaccination hoping to encourage those
who are hesitant.
No one doubts that government cannot introduce
a law to make vaccination mandatory in the sense of criminalising failure to
vaccinate against Covid-19. But,
similarly, no one can doubt that government, as an employer, has a duty to
provide staff with a safe system and place of work, including ensuring that
unvaccinated public servants do not put either other staff or members of the
public at risk of infection. Private
employers have a similar obligation.
Telling unvaccinated employees that they cannot interface with other
vaccinated staff or the public may well be an essential precaution in
fulfilling that duty.
What exactly has the Opposition been doing to
encourage people to vaccinate? While
Ministers are fully employed at the business of government, members of the
Opposition are now out of office. Should
they not be out debunking myths and campaigning to encourage their constituents
to go to the Hospital to receive their jabs?
Should they not be doing so just as energetically as they were before
the general elections, trying to get us to vote for them to keep them in power? How about each of them trying to send several
hundred people to get their shot. How
about visiting individuals and families in each of their constituencies,
debunking myths and offering encouragement and incentives, if necessary? Are they, instead, sitting back on their
laurels looking to make political points, regardless of the danger to our
people and to our economy?
Has the Opposition offered any alternative to
the mandatory vaccination remedy proposed by government for keeping us and our visitors
safe? What is their alternative
plan? Most of us have been vaccinated to
protect ourselves and the economy. What
about our right not to have to deal with selfish unvaccinated people who have
no interest in our welfare or the protection of our tourist economy? Is not every responsible employer obliged to
keep their employees and customers safe?
Why should we have to face reckless unvaccinated
persons coughing and spluttering all over the place? Those of us who have been vaccinated may not
get ill from these persons. But we are
still at risk of picking up the infection and taking it home to our family
members who are too old or too young to take the vaccination. Tourists who come to Anguilla may be
vaccinated, but their children will not be, until and unless there is a
vaccination for children. If Anguilla
could boast that all staff in tourism are vaccinated, that would be a major
selling point for Anguilla as a desirable tourist destination.
Our public health officials should be
congratulated for being so careful and methodical in their
recommendations. If the advice of our
professionals is followed by our political leaders, I am confident that we
shall remain safe and healthy. It will
only be a matter of time before our economy opens. If our leaders falter and their advice is
ignored, then the risk is that in just a few weeks’ time we shall be under
another lock-down, with some more infectious and dangerous variant circulating
in the community.
I will not be taking the Opposition’s
protestations seriously until I see them out in public encouraging people to
take the vaccine.
