Mary
Politicians in Australia are digging themselves a deep hole in their efforts to coerce mass vaccination of the population against Covid-19. The problems arise at several levels.
First, it is now very clear that the protections offered by the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines are not long-lasting. Israel, with one of the highest rates of vaccination in the world (mainly using Pfizer), is seeing case numbers sky-rocket and hospitals become overwhelmed with covid patients, with 95% of the severely ill people in hospital being fully vaccinated.
Those politicians advocating vaccine passports, allowing the fully vaccinated greater freedoms, will need to get their heads around dealing with those who were once fully vaccinated but have not taken booster shots.
Will they grant six-monthly renewals of the vaccine passports dependent on the holder having had a booster shot? What about those for whom the vaccine has not worked? What about people who have had, and recovered from covid and who have full immunity without the need for a vaccine? How do you differentiate between people who have had vaccines that offer differing periods of protection and people for whom the vaccine has worn off faster?
You then have the difficulty in having small business owners who have been hit hard by repeated, lengthy lockdowns and struggling to get back on their feet. Is a small pub in outback NSW really going to turn away a patron on the basis that he or she is not vaccinated? How many small businesses can afford to turn away potentially 20% of their customers?
Then there are the legal issues. Sydney law firm AFL Lawyers has launched a class-action lawsuit against the NSW government on behalf of workers who have been threatened with loss of their employment if they do not become fully vaccinated. Tony Nikolic of Ashley Francina and Leonard has led the fight against government overreach, putting parliamentarians on notice in his letter to NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard. While lengthy, the letter is worth the read.
There are legal issues that will need to be thrashed out in Court – the application of s.51(23)(a) of the Australian Constitution and its applicability in this situation. The Nuremberg Code will receive plenty of attention. Expect some interesting courtroom jousting.
It remains to be seen whether the NZ government will attempt to introduce vaccine passports and if so, whether it is challenged. The NZ Bill of Rights Act simply provides:
Right not to be subjected to medical or scientific experimentation
- Every person has the right not to be subjected to medical or scientific experimentation without that person’s consent.
Good luck to anyone taking the Ardern government to task if it attempts to divide the NZ community on the basis of vaccination status.
As Covid remains with us, the situation is becoming more and more complex. With the Delta strain now in the Australian and New Zealand communities and looking like it will become endemic, our respective governments can no longer rely on lockdowns and are showing no sign of recognising that we have to live with the virus. Interesting times lie ahead.
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