Tag: coronavirus

Bahrain Kuwait COVID-19 Apps Deemed Invasive

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On June 16, Amnesty International released a report by its Security Lab after testing eleven contact-tracing apps intended to assist governments in finding COVID-19 infections. Three countries stood out as having produced “alarming mass surveillance tools”: Bahrain, Kuwait, and Norway all used methods that the NGO considers “dangerous for human rights.”

“Bahrain, Kuwait and Norway have run roughshod over people’s privacy, with highly invasive surveillance tools which go far beyond what is justified in efforts to tackle COVID-19,” the head of Amnesty’s Security Lab stated. “Privacy must not be another casualty as governments rush to roll out apps.”

Norway stops app

Out of the three countries, one has already halted the use of its app. The Norwegian government made the decision hours after Amnesty International published the report. “The Norwegian app was highly invasive and the decision to go back to the drawing board is the right one,” Amnesty stated on their website.

The Norwegian app, Smittestopp, had not yet seen wide implementation but the invasive nature of the app’s design had prompted Norwegian data agency Datatilsynet to issue a warning. The agency said it would no longer allow Norway’s Institute of Public Health to access data generated by the app.

Camilla Stoltenberg, director of Norway’s public health institute, disputed the privacy claims and warned that the contact tracing app was needed in order to halt the local spread of coronavirus. “The pandemic is not over,” Stoltenberg stressed. The director’s concerns did not stop the government from halting the app and removing the data of its 600,000 users.

Privacy issues

The central issue with the Norwegian app is similar to those regarding Bahrain and Kuwait’s apps, as well as those of apps in development for the governments of France and the UK. The apps feature a constant stream of data reported on users and uploaded to a national database, allowing the government to know where its citizens are at all times.

A similar issue arose with Qatar’s contact-tracing app, which similarly captured and shared GPS data. Outside sources could have accessed this data as a security vulnerability had the potential to expose the information to over one million Qataris. Qatari officials say they have since fixed the issue.

The Bahraini and Kuwaiti apps both record GPS data into a centralized database instead of using a method based on Bluetooth, which would only activate when the user is in close proximity with an infected person. But Bluetooth is far from a flawless technology, prompting countries like France and the UK to opt for a similar method to that of Bahrain and Kuwait.

Surveillance

Amnesty International fears that governments could misuse the wealth of data recorded by the apps. Bahrain attempted to provide a positive incentive to stay home by using its app’s data to produce “Are You Home?” The national television show would offer families  prizes for staying home during Ramadan, verified using data from the BeAware Bahrain contact-tracing app.

While the show’s idea to provide positive incentives for COVID-19 adherence is commendable, the use of a public health database for such entertainment is not. Allowing anyone but the most qualified public health experts to access the recorded data highlights the potential for abuse.

Bahrain also published online data that revealed much about the demographics and personal details of people infected by COVID-19.

The Kuwaiti app used similarly centrally recorded data with vulnerabilities for potential abuse. The Kuwaiti app even used proximity reports between phones and Bluetooth bracelets to ensure people carried their phones with them.

After Norway’s quick response to Amnesty International’s analysis, the question remains as to what action Bahrain and Kuwait will take to prevent misuse of their contact-tracing apps.

Tunisia Eyes Economy After Declaring COVID-19 Victory

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Tunisian Prime Minister Elyes Fakhfakh used a national address on Tunisian television on Sunday, June 14 to declare victory over the coronavirus epidemic in the North African nation. The prime minister highlighted the repatriation of 25,000 Tunisians from countries abroad as he emphasized Tunisians should be proud of themselves for beating COVID-19.

On June 27, Tunisia will reopen its borders and welcome back tourists who provide much-needed revenue in the country that has seen its economy frozen in place for months. Despite their hit on the economy, the stringent measures and general adherence to lockdowns and curfews was a major contributor to Tunisia’s success, according to Fakhfakh.

Tunisia recorded 1,096 total cases of the coronavirus, with 49 Tunisian casualties. Recoveries are currently at 998, leaving only a few citizens receiving treatment and with few new cases reported since May 10. On June 16, a day after the PM’s speech, 16 new cases were reported according to the North Africa Post.

The country’s relative success in halting the spread of the virus did come at a significant economic cost and uncertainty prevails over whether the country should ask for foreign support.

External debt

On Sunday, Fakhfakh spoke about the economic state of the country as the government faces a $1.6 billion shortage in public financing due to the coronavirus epidemic. The debate has raged regarding whether the country should request funds from international institutions, or whether austerity could alleviate the financial burden.

“External debt reached dangerous levels and now reached 60% of GDP, compared to 30% in 2013 and I decided not to continue in this way,” Fakhfakh told Attessia TV. The government’s proposed solution is a freeze in public sector wages and a reliance on internal loans to solve the economic crisis.

“Public finances are very critical and we cannot continue with the approach of increasing wages,” Fakhfakh stated as the country faces an economy set to shrink by 4.3%. “Public finances are very critical and we cannot continue with the approach of increasing wages,” Fakhfakh said, potentially setting up a conflict with Tunisia’s influential general labor union, UGTT.

Tunisia’s powerful labor union has stated that Tunisia’s average public sector wage of $250 per month is one of the lowest in the world and a freeze on public sector wages would mean personal incomes would decrease in respect to a 6.3% inflation rate.

Debating foreign assistance

Fakhfakh’s proclamation about public sector wages on Sunday will undoubtedly require reconsideration. The World Bank approved a $175 million disbursement from a collective international support fund known as the Resilience and Recovery Emergency Development Policy Operation.

“This crisis is a serious challenge,” Ferid Belhaj of the World Bank stated, “but it could also be an opportunity for Tunisia to redefine its position in the global economy by improving conditions for investment and job creation in the private sector.”

“This is an unprecedented budget support,” Tunisia’s Minister for Development, Investment and International Cooperation, Selim Azzabi stated. But it appears that the aid could come with major demands from the World Bank, as Azzabi said that the aid “required intense inter-donor coordination of several months carried out by our ministry.”

A statement from the World Bank included references to “improve the transparency and performance of state-owned enterprises” and “improving the business climate,” which are often euphemisms for nationalizing industry and cutting taxes and regulations for large businesses.

It is not yet clear whether Fakhfakh’s unpopular announcement on public sector wages is his own decision or simply acquiescence to a condition demanded as part of World Bank assistance.

COVID-19’s Secondary Effects Could Increase MENA Child Mortality by 40%

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Overstretched health services, missed vaccinations, and mistrust are all secondary impacts of COVID-19 that could lead to a dramatic increase in child mortality according to a new Johns Hopkins University study commissioned by the World Health Organization and UNICEF released on Sunday.  

“The COVID-19 pandemic is putting health systems under unprecedented stress in the region. Primary health care services have either decreased or been interrupted in several countries,” said UNICEF Regional Director in the Middle East and North Africa Ted Chaiban and WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Region Dr. Ahmed Al-Mandhari in a joint June 14 statement. 

The study looked at three different scenarios to understand how changes to health service provision and the economic impact of COVID-19 affect child and maternal health in ten MENA countries — Algeria, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Morocco, Syria, Sudan, Tunisia, and Yemen.  

The MENA region, like the rest of the world, has seen few actual cases of the coronavirus in children, but the secondary effects of the pandemic are nevertheless “affecting children’s health firsthand,” the study found.

The Threat of Secondary Effects

“An additional 51,000 children under the age of five might die in the region by the end of 2020 if the current disruption of essential health and nutrition services is protracted and malnutrition among children increases,” the joint statement revealed. 

“If this happens, it would be an increase of nearly 40 per cent in comparison to pre-COVID figures, reversing progress made in child survival in the region by nearly two decades.” 

The pandemic has directed frontline workers away from providing essential services to mothers and their children such as immunization, treatment of neonatal infections and childhood diseases, pregnancy and childbirth care, and malnutrition programs. The WHO and UNICEF say coronavirus movement restrictions, economic downturn, and wariness of health workers and facilities driven by fear of contracting the disease are also creating new barriers to pediatric healthcare. 

“But we can avoid this scenario, allowing tens of thousands of children to celebrate their fifth birthday surrounded by their families and friends,” the WHO and UNICEF say. 

The UN agencies are calling for MENA countries to resume vaccination campaigns and nutrition services, facilitate access to primary health care for all children, provide sufficient infection prevention and control equipment to health workers, and begin communication initiatives aimed at restoring trust in the public health system. 

Too Late for Children in Yemen 

The worst case scenario is already playing out in Yemen, home to the world’s worst humanitarian crisis and where a funding shortfall has already forced the UNFPA to cut lifesaving reproductive health services to 140 out of 180 health facilities in the war-torn country.  

“We are now in a life-or-death situation. Women and girls will die if we do not provide critical reproductive health services. We can only do so if funding becomes available,” said the UNFPA’s acting representative in Yemen, Nestor Owomuhangi, on May 29.  

Food programs have also been cut as a result of insufficient funding in the country where an estimated two million children under five are suffering from acute malnutrition.  

The World Food Programme, which provides food and nutrition assistance to around 12 million people across Yemen, states it “urgently needs US$416 million to ensure uninterrupted food assistance for the next six months.” 

On June 2, an international pledging conference co-hosted by the UN and Saudi Arabia fell short of its $2.41 billion fundraising target, with donors pledging just $1.35 billion — a shortfall largely attributed to the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. 

It remains to be seen if the UN will secure alternative funding sources to support essential programs in Yemen. If not, it seems the country’s most vulnerable, namely women and children, are destined to become the forgotten victims of the global COVID-19 pandemic. 

Read also: Saudi Arabia’s Anti-Mine Program “Masam” Works to Make Yemen Safer

 

Trump Campaign Confident of 2020 Victory

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Democrats are elated at recent polling that pit Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden against the incumbent, Republican Donald Trump. After months of close polling, Biden appears to have pulled ahead to a double-digit lead, with most polls showing he built an 8-13% advantage. The Economist is giving Joe Biden a 97% chance of beating Trump in the all-important electoral college after projecting a 50-50 chance in early March.

Yet GOP officials on the Trump campaign told Politico they predict a “landslide” victory. “The more bad things happen in the country, it just solidifies support for Trump,” GOP chair for North Carolina’s Robeson County, Phillip Stephens said. It appears that Republican campaign officials are counting on a potential economic revival as the country gradually reopens, which would bring a flurry of good news for Trump to report.

Strangely, both campaigns appear highly confident of victory.“The campaign is Joe Biden’s to lose,” political commentator and former congressional candidate Cenk Uygur told the hosts of popular YouTube-broadcast show “The Young Turks.” But Uygur warned: “Never underestimate an establishment Democrat’s ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.”

Polls

As one of the most unpopular presidents in US history, Trump received his highest approval rating so far in April when 45% approved of his job performance, with 51% disapproving. But as the COVID-19 crisis unraveled business-as-usual, his polling numbers started to steadily decline. A Rasmussen poll on June 15 showed 58% of participants disapproving of the president’s performance, with 41% approving.

In head-to-head national polling, Abacus Data is showing Biden leading Trump 51% to 41%, while a June 10 YouGov poll showed Biden up 9%. In encouraging news for the Democrats, Biden is apparently less unpopular than Hillary Clinton, with 37% of voters seeing him positively in a June 2020 NBC News/WSJ poll.

While Biden is also gaining in battleground states, the United States’ intertwined crises in health and inequality, and the uncertain future of the coming months, leave much unclear.

Impact of COVID-19

The coronavirus epidemic has so far claimed more lives in the country than the US lost in World War I, with no sign of stopping anytime soon. Yet the extremely divided American media landscape means citizens remain divided on whether the country took the right measures to halt the epidemic.

Trump supporters have held protests to demand the “reopening” of their states and right-wing outlets have seen any criticism of the Trump administration’s approach, including from scientists, as political attacks against the Republican president.

Meanwhile, the country is reopening in the midst of what many consider to still be the first wave of infections. The GOP appears to be prioritizing the economy in order to recover some of the job losses before the election, but ever-increasing infection rates are already influencing markets and oil prices.

It is possible that continued COVID-19 infections leading up to November could mean radical changes to how Americans vote. Primaries held in the last months have seen an increase in voting by mail, which Republicans are now working hard to discredit.

Anti-Racism protests

While the protests following the death of George Floyd have now decreased when in terms of violence, the streets of large cities across the US continue to see passionate demonstrations. Following their eagerness to repeatedly publicize images of burning buildings, the media appears to have lost interest. Still, most Americans appear to trust their media and an untold amount of people will have perceived the protests incorrectly.

Whether the protests will energize Democratic voters or spur Republicans towards the polls remains to be seen. The Democrats have not presented any proposals that make the coming election an outright referendum on the rights of American minorities, instead opting for photo ops and symbolic messaging.

Furthermore, Biden’s problematic past remarks on Black Americans received little attention during the primaries, while the Trump campaign is sure to repeat them ad nauseam. The Democratic strategy of presenting Biden as the “anti-Trump” is nearly identical to Hillary Clinton’s strategy. Like Biden, Clinton also consistently polled higher than Trump in the lead up to the 2016 elections.

Repeating mistakes

In any other political system, the opposition would blame the incumbent for orchestrating the largest wealth transfer from the poor to the rich. The bailouts that followed the 2008 crash caused a political bloodbath among Republicans, but Democrats are complicit in the unanimous passing of the 2020 stimulus bill.

Democrats could highlight systemic inequality, but as the 2020 primaries revealed, many would rather not vote at all than even consider overhauling American economics by electing Sanders. The reason for Biden’s primary victory comes down to political maneuvering. Some candidates who secured more delegates than Biden in specific states suspended their campaigns and united behind him in order to prevent a Sanders candidacy.

The Democrats will be hard-pressed to make any strong arguments except for those to which the American public has already been desensitized, including his racism, cruelty, minimal intelligence, and vanity. Biden has chosen to remain quiet during the pandemic response in an effort to allow Trump to self-destruct, but in turn has not shown any substantial leadership himself.

Unfair game

In the end, American politics are not about convincing enough of the other parties’ voters. They are all about energizing the party’s pre-existing base. The reality is that Democrats have used much of their political ammunition during their “resistance” while Trump’s campaign has many yet-to-be-revealed details on Biden that could depress Democratic enthusiasm.

Even if Biden wins the most votes, that is no guarantee of victory, as Hillary Clinton learned in 2016. Beyond that threat, Trump still has the option to give the “green light” for Israeli annexation of the West Bank, which could upend the race.

While Biden’s polling currently looks good, there is no reason for Democrats to cheer just yet. Lessons from 2016 are still relevant, and Democrats appear to have very little beyond growing youth involvement that could help them this year. With Trump providing a perfect channel for his supporters’ rage, it is still unclear whether Democrats can similarly enthuse their traditional base.

The fact that Democrats are not in a clear lead against a candidate — one who has caused thousands of deaths and millions of unemployed people — reveals the need for deep reform in their party. It appears impossible to lose to Trump, but if anyone can do it, it is the Democrats.

Egypt Set to Reopen Airports, Welcome Tourists Starting July 1

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On Sunday the Egyptian Civil Aviation Minister Mohamed Manar announced the country would reopen all of its airports to regular international services from July 1 after closing them in mid-March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The move is a win for Egypt’s flailing tourism sector and a group of Belarusian visitors, who are set to be the first to benefit from Egypt’s Red Sea coast this summer when they arrive in Hurghada on July 4. 

During a press conference on June 14, the civil aviation minister, along with Tourism Minister Khaled El Anani and Information Minister Osama Haikal, said flights will gradually resume from the beginning of July, to the delight of struggling tourism operators. Tourism is a major employer in Egypt and accounts for between 5% and 12% of GDP, but has faced a difficult decade rocked by the 2011 revolution, terrorism, and now COVID-19.  

To facilitate the resumption of flights, Egypt has put in place a “comprehensive plan” that takes “into account the safety of citizens and tourists alike,” Haikal said. International tourists will initially only be allowed to visit Egypt’s three “touristic provinces” along the Red Sea — South Sinai, the Red Sea, and Marsa Matrouh governorates — but the restrictions will gradually be eased, the trio said. 

“Passengers will be required to finalize several measures before boarding their plane to Egypt, including signing an acknowledgment document specifying the Egyptian city they plan to visit before receiving their boarding cards,” Manar explained. 

“Passengers coming from countries announced to be affected by the pandemic shall submit a fresh PCR [COVID-19] test no later than 48 hours before their flights,” he added.

Travelers, the airplanes they arrive on, airports, and hotels will all be subject to strict sterilization and disinfection regimes, while passengers and crew will be required to wear masks and maintain social distancing during boarding and while exiting the plane, the civil aviation minister noted.  

The Egyptian government is also offering a number of incentives to entice travelers back. The government is subsidizing aviation fuel, temporarily removing tourist visas and their $25 fee, reducing airport fees and taxes by 50%, and cutting the admission price for Supreme Council of Antiquities sites by 20%.  

The Tourism Minister said he will brief his Arab counterparts on Egypt’s re-opening plans, and hopes to encourage tourists from the Arab world back quickly. Anani has also been in talks with his Belarusian counterpart, and those of fellow Eastern European nations Serbia and Ukraine. 

As a result of a recent virtual meeting between the tourism ministers, a flight carrying eager Belarusian tourists is set to become the first group of foreign visitors to return to post-COVID-19 Egypt when they land at Hurghada Airport along the Red Sea on July 4. Egypt is a top tourism destination for Belarusian travelers, 90% of which visit the coastal resorts located in the picturesque Red Sea and South Sinai governorates, according to the Red Sea Tourism Investors Association.

Read also: Egypt Cracks Down on Female TikTok Stars for Alleged ‘Debauchery’

COVID-19 Spreads to Darfur Refugee Camps

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The term “Internally Displaced Person” (IDP) is a rather abstract term the United Nations uses to indicate a person who has been made a refugee in their home country. For the 1.6 million people crammed in the permanent camps in Darfur, Sudan, the term is anything but abstract. For almost two decades, the residents of Darfur’s camps for “IDPs” have lived in fear of returning home as they remain powerless in the face of violence.

The relative safety of Darfur’s camps are now facing a new threat as humanitarian and medical workers in the area have warned of an alarming rise in suspected COVID-19 related deaths. Darfur’s camps have only sparse medical facilities in a country that has suffered immensely from two tumultuous decades during which Sudan has broken into two, seen a fragile and inconclusive popular revolution, and is now in no way prepared to face the threat of the coronavirus.

COVID-19 in Darfur

The Sudanese government has reported 7,007 cases of COVID-19 and 447 related deaths, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO) on June 15—a vast underestimation of the true scale according to experts, the Associated Press reports. In Darfur’s IDP camps, the elderly are getting infected and dying from COVID-19 symptoms without any treatment or response. People are dying at a disastrous rate as medical workers are unable to treat the infections that are creating another untold tragedy for Darfur’s fragile population.

Dozens of death announcements are posted each day in the camps outside Al Fashir, the capital of North Darfur province. The town has nearly tripled in size since the influx of internal refugees when heavily armed militias burned down villages during  Darfur conflict and forced many to take refuge in UN camps. Now, a new threat has emerged in their midst, leaving no safe place for the victims of Darfur’s brutal conflict.

Vanished people

Mohamed Hassan Adam, director of IDP camp Abu Shuk, told the Associated Press that his camp has seen 64 unexplained deaths in one corner of the camp alone. Adam told the press agency about his neighbors, all in their 60s, who withered away and “vanished” one by one.

“They get exhausted then they die. There is no way to tell what happened,” Adam stated.

Ashraf Issa, spokesman for the local UN peacekeeping mission said “we are in the eye of the storm” about the explosion of COVID-19 infections, as local officials have little resources to treat or even detect cases of the coronavirus. A health ministry official told the AP that Darfur is “like a separate continent” as Darfur’s problems are exponentially worse than the eastern parts of the country.

No revolution

For those in Darfur’s camps, the virus presents a potential death sentence. Most people there have nowhere left to run as continued violence and oppression awaits them if they attempt to return home. For many, the entire concept of home has changed as children have grown up in Al Fashir’s sprawling and crammed camps, with many knowing no other life besides it.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) wants to try Sudan’s former dictator Omar al-Bashir on charges of genocide and war crimes for his role in the Darfur conflict. Although the Sudanese transitional government has agreed to hand Al Bashir over to the ICC, few things have changed for the people in Darfur, for whom the revolution has meant very little.

With no outlook for change and the continued threat of violence outside of the UN camps, Darfur’s people face an unprecedented challenge with nowhere to go. “We’re losing a whole generation,” Gamal Abdulkarim Abdullah, director of Zam Zam camp, told the AP.

“The government barely knows we exist,” Mohamed Hassan Adam reiterated. “I fear the worst is yet to come.”

COVID-19 Clusters Shutter Yemen, Philippines Embassies in Saudi Arabia

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With over 123,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, Saudi Arabia has one of the highest counts in the Gulf, and the latest embassy closures show that even diplomatic missions have not managed to escape the novel virus.  

The Embassy of Yemen, located in the Diplomatic Quarter of Riyadh, announced its closure through its official Facebook page at 6 p.m. on the evening of Saturday, June 13. 

“The Embassy of the Republic of Yemen in Riyadh announces suspension of work from tomorrow Sunday, 14/6/2020 indefinitely due to the emergence of a number of cases of Coronavirus-19,” the post read.

“The embassy wishes everyone good health and wellness,” it concluded. The Yemeni Embassy had long been closed to the public due to the COVID-19 outbreak in Saudi Arabia and only began accepting consular appointments again on June 11. 

Meanwhile, on June 10, the Embassy of the Philippines, also located in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter, said it would also be forced to close again, “effective June 14 2020 until further notice,” after identifying a coronavirus cluster among staff of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO).  

“POLO-Riyadh officials and staff need to undergo quarantine processes after several of them recently tested positive for COVID-19,” the embassy said in an official press release. 

“Embassy personnel who recently came in contact with the infected POLO-Riyadh employees shall also undergo quarantine and COVID-19 testing to ensure the safety of the transacting public,” it added.    

The statement did not specify how many staff members were infected with COVID-19, but Arab Times reports six staff members tested positive for the virus. The office will be subject to deep cleaning and sterilization while staff work from home, according to the same source.  

Services at the Embassy of the Philippines, which only reopened on June 7, will not be affected. POLO-Riyadh personnel will continue to offer client services and counselling over the phone, the embassy added.

Read also: A New Caste: Houthis Divide Yemen with Tax Reform

COVID-19 Closures Force MENA Smokers to Reconsider the Future of Shisha

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Governments across the MENA region, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the UAE, have shut down shisha cafes as they attempt to slow the spread of coronavirus. 

In Europe, where shisha bars are also closed due to government-mandated shutdowns, a number continued to operate illegally. Government officials in both Germany and the United Kingdom caught out illegal shisha cafe operators when health authorities identified the cafes as the source of new coronavirus outbreaks. 

Earlier this month in the town of Gottingen in Lower Saxony, 36 people contracted coronavirus after visiting an illegally operated shisha cafe. A further 310 entered quarantine as a result of contact with those infected.

Perfect for spreading the virus 

The communal nature of shisha, with the pipe being passed among groups, makes it a natural conduit for coronavirus. Health experts have suggested that the threat is heightened by the fact that only the mouthpiece is changed between use by one group of customers and the next. 

The pipe and base remain the same between customers, furthering the risk of the virus spreading via particles from a contaminated user. The details of the spread of coronavirus during shisha use remain slightly unclear and further research is needed to understand in precise detail how the device contributes to the spread of the virus. Doctors remain sure, however, that the device is susceptible to spreading the virus. 

Health experts have also suggested that the large exhalations of smoke clouds may also contain virus particles with the risk being particularly high when smoking in an enclosed space. The bouts of coughing that often accompany shisha smoking present a further risk. 

Established health concerns 

The case against reopening shisha bars is being expanded by some to include a discussion of the health impacts of smoking shisha.

Prior to COVID-19 concern was growing over the health impacts of shisha with studies showing that smoking shisha for one hour can be as harmful as smoking 100 cigarettes. The practice has also been linked to increased rates of diabetes and obesity. 

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has previously stated that smokers are more likely to suffer from severe forms of coronavirus if they fall ill. As a result of the impact of smoking on the lungs, smokers are unable to fight the virus as effectively as non-smokers. 

Despite the health concerns, the number of daily shisha smokers remained high prior to COVID-19.  Arab News estimates there are 100 million daily smokers with 15% of 13-15 year olds in Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, and Yemen smoking shisha. 

The use of charcoal for heating shisha is a further cause for concern as it releases carbon monoxide. In enclosed bars and spaces this can lead to poisoning of staff and patrons. Last year, a shisha cafe in Tooting, in South London, was forced to close after the residents in the flats above, including young children, suffered carbon monoxide poisoning. 

Carbon monoxide poisoning occurs when the colorless and odorless gas enters the bloodstream. As a result of mixing with haemoglobin, the blood is no longer able to carry oxygen and this causes the body’s cells and tissues to die.

Fortunately, all those in Tooting recovered, but the incident further highlights the risks of shisha. As coronavirus restrictions begin to ease and cafes reopen, there is space for broader discussions about the future of shisha cafes.  

European Leaders Hide COVID-19 Deaths

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Belgium has faced international criticism for its high COVID-19 death-rate, but Belgian scientists claim that the rest of the EU are under-counting or under-reporting fatalities.

Professor Steven van Gucht, head of Belgium’s scientific COVID-19 response team has been under fire from both national and international actors for using a counting method that the British Health Foundation describes as the “fairest way to compare COVID-19 deaths internationally.”

Van Gucht has felt the pressure from Belgium’s business community and political leadership who have urged him to change the method of counting, “but we refused,” van Gucht told Deutsche Welle. Infection rates appear to be slowing in Europe, allowing for a deeper look into the numbers behind the pandemic’s impact on Europe.

Excess Deaths

It now appears that Belgium is one of the few European countries that has accurately reported the scale of the crisis on its citizens, while most have downplayed their numbers. “Official covid-19 death tolls still under-count the true number of fatalities,” the Economist concluded when they compared “excess deaths,” the increase in deaths compared to a five-year average.

In Belgium, this April saw the most deaths since the country was under Nazi occupation. While many other countries will have reached similar milestones they have not been revealed because of the structural under-reporting by national leaders.

Despite the scrutiny and mistrust surrounding COVID-19 data from China and Iran, data presented by the “revered ladies and gentlemen” that rule Europe have received no such scrutiny. That was a mistake, new data reveals, as most European leaders appear to have downplayed thousands of deaths in their countries.

Systematic under-reporting

Between March 14 and May 15, Britain’s government reported 45,298 coronavirus-related deaths, while the true number appears to stand at 59,100, meaning that Boris Johnson’s government is not reporting almost one in every four deaths.

The Dutch “intelligent lock-down” apparently has been supported through less than complete numbers, as Prime Minister Mark Rutte has only reported 60% of the country’s death-toll, ignoring 3,745 fatalities out of a total death-toll of 9,405 between March 16 and May 17.

In Italy almost half of all COVID-19 deaths have not been reported as such, with the country’s official tally standing at 12,178 deaths between February 26 and March 31, while the real number appears to be 24,031. Based on the data provided by the Economist, besides Belgium, only France and Spain come close to reporting their actual numbers.

Why it matters

This systematic misinformation could have dire consequences as citizens do not see the true scale of the tragedy that has befallen their country, and will not hold their leaders to account.

The patchwork of different approaches across Europe appears to have developed a perverse competition over which country ‘outperformed’ the others, creating an incentive to downplay numbers.

As an example, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has been enjoying rising popularity for himself and his center-right party. Instead of facing criticism for the country’s failure to prevent the deaths of over 9,000 citizens in a single month, the Dutch appear to have been lulled into a false sense of confidence in their elected leaders.

As a result a government that failed to adequately prepare and wasted valuable time in implementing lock-downs will likely not face any political ramifications.

Little criticism has emerged over the government’s decision to allow a large-scale festival in the country’s southern provinces while Italy was already implementing its first lockdown in Lombardy. Within a month it became clear the decision had led to a large outbreak in the country’s south.

Weeks later the Dutch PM still upheld that the country was in the “containment phase” and was touting “herd immunity” as a strategy even as thousands had already become infected. On March 21, Dutch health officials were shipping patients to northern provinces as hospitals in the south were flooded by COVID-19 patients in need of intensive care.

Consequences

By the end of March the number of cases was doubling every week and health officials announced that 2,400 intensive care beds would be needed, more than double the Dutch total capacity of 1,150.

Because the true death-rate was never revealed, the government’s failure to prepare adequately for a pandemic after a decade of its own austerity-led reductions in hospitals and medical staff never became a political issue.

While any attempt to misinform the public is roundly highlighted and mocked whenever Donald Trump engages in it, the misplaced reverence for European leaders has created a dangerous precedent where leaders are not being held to account for similar acts.

The false sense of confidence in Europe’s leaders could easily mean that even a second wave of infections will not lead to any significant criticism or consequences for the national leaders who used distorted data to justify a rush to reopen the economy.

Emirates Lays Off More Cabin Crew, Pilots

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On June 9, the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) state-owned carrier made the “difficult decision” to begin retrenching workers, despite financial support assurances from the government. Emirates is yet to comment on the exact number of employees made redundant over the last two days, but an estimated 700 cabin crew and 600 pilots have been let go, according to airline sources who spoke to Arabian Business.  

Emirates said it had done its best to hold onto the airline’s workers for as long as possible but the global air travel downturn forced the company to reassess and begin mass reductions. The airline moved to assure workers they will receive their “contractual basic salary and fixed allowances,” in a termination letter seen by Bloomberg on June 9. 

“We have been doing everything possible to retain the talented people that make up our workforce for as long as we can. However, given the significant impact that the pandemic has had on our business, we simply cannot sustain excess resources and have to right size our workforce in line with our reduced operations,” Emirates said in a statement.  

The company continued the process of cutting jobs for a second day, Emirates sources told Reuters on June 10. The sources said Airbus A380, and Boeing 777 pilots are the next in line for redundancy layoffs. 

As the true impact of border closures and travel restrictions started to bite into Emirates’ cash reserves, the UAE government assured the world’s largest long-haul airline it would pump equity into the carrier.  

While COVID continues to shrink the aviation sector, it appears even government support was not enough to save jobs, forcing Emirates to draw up a new “resource plan,” according to a redundancy notice seen by Bloomberg and Gulf News. 

“Every business has had to re-examine its processes and resources to match the operational and support requirement in the months ahead,” the termination letter told staff. “Our new resource plan will see us through the next 18 months at least, and we cannot continue having an excess of people in certain roles.” 

The Emirates staff join thousands of other industry workers laid off due to the COVID-19 crisis, which has devastated aviation. The Dubai flagship carrier estimates it could take up to four years to resume normal flights to all 157 destinations it serviced pre-COVID-19, and Emirates Group CEO Tim Clark has warned A380s will not be back in the skies until a coronavirus vaccine is rolled out.  

The newly redundant cabin crew and pilots’ chances of finding a job in the same field are slim with industry body International Air Transport Association predicting 25 million global aviation jobs could disappear altogether due to the pandemic’s enormous impact.

Read also: US Ambassador Praises UAE’s COVID-19 Response

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