Governments globally are sanctioning strict measures to stop the spread of the Coronavirus.
However, this has brought up some interesting questions regarding privacy, human rights and the power that authorities should be given.
They say “The opportunists never let a good crisis go to waste”. Thus, crisis, for wannabe autocrats and dictators around the world, is a perfect time to solidify their power.
And such global pandemic which puts people into panic is the perfect recipe for leaders around the world to solidify their powers.
Are their actions justified? Well, a global pandemic does warrant an unprecedented response but there is a difference between an unprecedented response and total control.
The laws passed during a crisis are often hastily viewed or voted on without much deliberation. This can lead to certain issues in the future. It is not uncommon for laws passed during a crisis to stay on long after the said crisis has blown over.
Take for example the post 9/11 Patriot Act. The initial purpose was to allow intelligence agencies to be able to spy on terrorists and their activities but also allowed the US government to be able to keep tabs on its citizens. That was back in 2001, and the law still exists even after nineteen years.
Similarly, states such as the Philippines, Thailand, South Korea, Great Britain, United States, Bolivia and the most worrying example, Hungary have granted emergency powers which would be almost unthinkable in any other circumstance.
Shockingly, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu has given his national security agencies the power to track their citizens’ mobile phones to catch any suspected cases of COVID-19. He has also ordered the shutdown of courts in his country, rather very conveniently delaying his impending trial for corruption.
Similarly, South Korea should be commended for halting the spread of the virus, but it had to implement Draconian measures and these may stay in place after the crisis has passed.
Moreover, in Bolivia the elections have been suspended till further notice. Not to forget that the upcoming elections in May were very significant after the upheaval which deposed the former President, Evo Morales.
The interim President Jeanine Anez has consolidated her power and ordered the military to commence crackdowns on opposition groups and protests and indicates that she plans to remain in power.
Not less than anyone, the United States narrowly avoided a new bill that would allow the indefinite detention of citizens without a court trial as well as repeal for legal protection for asylum seekers.
Another to review is Great Britain who has passed a set of controversial laws. Such as the new law that is effective for two years allowing the British Government to detain the Corona Virus suspects, ban all public protests and deploy twenty thousand troops. Again, these troops supposedly will not be used for additional policing.
While the laws passed by these governments seem rather problematic, they fade in comparison to what is happening in Hungary. The Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban, widely denounced as a wannabe Dictator has got the perfect opportunity to snatch power in his country.
Orban now has the power to suspend already existing laws and Veto any new laws in parliament which he does not like. Thus, he may limit freedom of expression, and suspend all elections and referendums. He has demanded these laws indefinitely. Clearly, he is now ruling the country by personal decree.
Victor Orban is perhaps the strongest example of politicians using the crisis to successfully to drag their country into Autocracy. His regime over the past decade has consolidated the media, twisted school and university curriculum to shape their version of history, and torn down monuments of old regimes. As one Hungarian Philosopher puts it,
“The country has been transformed into a Post-Fascist state”.
This is just one example of autocracy riding a wave of real and fabricated crises. However, there exists hope as well. In Hungary, people have begun a slight resistance to the authoritarian regimes of Victor Orban.
To conclude, it is very important for citizens to listen and follow their government in such times as this because in most cases, the government only wishes the best for their people. But most importantly, they should not allow their government to take radical steps towards authoritarianism. As a famous quote goes, “People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people.”
Also Read: A Ghost Of The Past
Good analysis, a visionary approach .Keep it up Mehar.