COVID-19

Image credit: Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the UN in New York.

Non-Aligned Movement Aligned Against COVID-19

By Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Sr Lanka President

The following is the text of the Sri Lankan President's address on May 4 to the online summit meeting of the 120-member Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) under the theme "United Against COVID-19":

COLOMBO (IDN) – I am pleased to be participating at this Summit, in support of global solidarity, unity and renewed multi-lateral cooperation in overcoming COVID-19.

Sri Lanka firmly believes that this Summit will serve as an important platform for the NAM Member States to support collective global action in combating this deadly virus and sharing best practices and lessons learnt.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 11 May 2020

Image: Collage of images of biomasks and COVID-19 with graphics from Internet.

Beware of Weaponizing COVID-19

Viewpoint by Jayasri Priyalal

SINGAPORE (IDN) – Weapons of Mass Destructions (WMD) were something that USA and UK coalition forces were trying to find in the armouries of Saddam Hussain in Iraq in March 2003. Anglo-Saxon media was painting the fears of death, destruction and sufferings to humankind unless those weapons were destroyed – justifying the illegal invasion of the allied forces into a sovereign Iraq, violating all international laws and order.

They found neither any evidence of WMD nor chemical weapons for justifying the invasion. Will the COVID-19 too, become an invisible WMD with the ongoing global pandemic which has locked down nearly the entire world economy?

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 10 May 2020

Photo: Demonstrators filled the sidewalk and part of 10th Street in Sacramento during the "Operation Gridlock" stay-at-home protest at the Capitol Monday, April 20, 2020. Photo by Andrew Nixon, CapRadi

Do Not Abuse Science for Corona Politics

Viewpoint by Cees Jan Hamelink*

This article was originally published on Other News, a vehicle for "voices against the tide" and is being reproduced with thanks.

AMSTERDAM (IDN) – As a scientist it is of course gratifying for me to hear that government policy on Covid-19 takes science seriously. And it is gratifying when press conferences of the prime minister and other authorities refer to scientific research. However, if it is not immediately mentioned by whom these studies were carried out and by whom they were critically assessed, I, as a scientist, become restless.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 10 May 2020

Photo: An air and missile defense crew member loads a Stinger missile onto an Avenger short-range air defense missile system on Shipton Kaserne, Ansbach, Germany, during training, April 30, 2020. Credit: Dani Johnson, U.S. Army

US Army Garrison in Germany Is Maintaining 'Combat Proficiency' During COVID-19

By Dani Johnson

The writer is assigned to United States Army Garrison Ansbach in Germany's southern state of Bavaria. This feature first appeared on U.S. Defense News on May 9. While the global media is focused on the impact of the disastrous impact of the corona virus on the U.S. and elsewhere around the world, the American Air Defense Artillery Battalion is maintaining "combat proficiency".

ANSBACH, Germany (IDN) – With the mission of providing short-range air defense, the 5th Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, or 5-4 ADAR, continues to train to maintain combat proficiency on Shipton Kaserne, Ansbach, Germany, during the COVID-19 pandemic. [Shipton Konzerne is a small United States Army post outside of Ansbach, Germany.]

: Europe Editor; COVID-19; 09 May 2020

We Are Fighting Two Enemies at the Same Time: a Deadly Virus and a Deadlier Hunger

By Bea Cordia

NEW YORK (IDN) – COVID-19 has shattered the entire world. As a result of what some people have called the ‘Great Lockdown’, economic activity has plummeted, borders have been closed, and national health systems are on the edge of collapse.

Since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, more than 250,000 people have died from the highly contagious disease, which spread across geographical, racial and ethnic borders. The worst, however, is yet to come.

: UN Bureau; SUSTAINABILITY; Gender Equality; 08 May 2020

Photo credit: Paul Saad/African Arguments

COVID-19: An Open Letter from African Intellectuals to Africa’s Leaders

100 leading academics and writers call on leaders to govern with compassion and see the crisis as a chance for a radical change of direction. The following is the full text of the letter, being reproduced courtesy of African Arguments under a Creative Commons Licence 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).

LONDON (IDN) – The threats that are hanging over the African continent with regards to the spread of COVID-19 demand our individual and collective attention. The situation is critical. Yet this is not about mitigating another “African” humanitarian crisis but to diffuse the potentially damaging effects of a virus that has shaken the global order and put under question the bases of our living-together.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 07 May 2020

Pandemics: Lessons Looking Back from 2050 – Part 1

Viewpoint by Fritjof Capra and Hazel Henderson*

This article was originally published on Other News, a vehicle for "voices against the tide" and is being reproduced with thanks.

Berkeley | JACKSONVILLE (IDN) – Imagine, it is the year 2050 and we are looking back to the origin and evolution of the coronavirus pandemic over the last three decades. Extrapolating from recent events, we offer the following scenario for such a view from the future.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 07 May 2020

Photo: Children, highly vulnerable to COVID-19, look to the future with optimism. Credit: Dilrukshi Handunnetti.

Sri Lanka Has Been Successful in Countering COVID-19

The Small Indian Ocean Island Deserves Recognition

Viewpoint by Dr Palitha Kohona

The writer is former Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, and former Foreign Secretary.

COLOMBO (IDN) – Sri Lanka has been successful so far, compared to most countries in the world, in the fight against Covid-19. The mind-numbing figures of death and infection streaming in from many parts of the globe are not being reflected in Sri Lanka. An infection rate of around 700 with 7 deaths in a population of over 21 million are figures to arouse excitement. But surprisingly, no glowing headlines applauding the success of this small relatively poor Indian Ocean island embellish the front pages.

: Dr. Palitha Kohona; OPINION; 06 May 2020

Fake News Is 'Infodemic' That Puts Lives at Risk

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – While Americans hotly debate the subject of "fake news," Africans and others around the world marked a day for reflection on press freedoms in theory and in practice. The theme for this year's event launched by the UN agency UNESCO was "Journalism without fear or favour".

The state of journalism in most parts of the world is precarious, according to many media specialists.

: Global Information Network; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 05 May 2020

People in the Global South Don't Need Debt Relief, They Need a New System

Viewpoint by Meera Karunananthan*

This article was originally published on openDemocracy. Any views or opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of IDN-InDepth News

OTTAWA (IDN) – "Those who led us into debt were gambling, as if they were in a casino … there is talk of a crisis. No. They gambled. They lost … We cannot repay the debt because we have nothing to pay it with. If we do not pay, our creditors will not die. We can be sure of that. On the other hand, if we pay, it is we who will die. Of that we can be equally sure." [Thomas Sankara, President of Burkina Faso, 1983-87]