OMICRON: SA SCIENTISTS STRIKE BACK Travel ban threatens information sharing, weakens global solidarity By ESTELLE ELLIS EstelleEllis
published in the authoritative medical journal, Lancet, on Saturday 4 December a group of eminent South African scientists have warned that the travel bans slapped on South Africa after reporting the Omicron variant was not only unwarranted but a threat to global solidarity and could have dire consequences for the sharing of information in future.
Apart from the United Kingdom, travel from South Africa has also been stopped by among others the United States, the European Union, Canada, Turkey, Sri Lanka, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Australia, Japan, Thailand, Seychelles, Brazil, Rwanda, Mauritius and Guatemala. Several other countries including Israel and the USA, swiftly followed suit with travel bans placed on flights from countries in sub-Saharan Africa, as a “precautionary measure.”
Referring to the travel bans, the authors stressed that this was unwarranted and has generated intense anger and frustration. “In 2002, the Chinese Government was criticised for withholding information on SARS. In November, 2021, South African scientists rapidly and transparently shared the findings of mutation and genomic sequences of the latest SARS-CoV-2 variant. Rather than applaud their generosity and openness, travel bans have had the opposite effect and could be damaging to the health response, economy, and freedom of movement.
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