Skip to main content

Technocratic globalism, tyranny? Health Ministry warned: bill to 'enslave' Indians

Sandeep Pandey, Tushar Gandhi
By Rosamma Thomas* 
Union of Concerned Citizens, a group comprising Magsaysay Award winner Prof Sandeep Pandey, human rights activist Tushar Gandhi, former judge of the Bombay High Court BG Kolse Patil, pediatrician Dr Jacob Puliyel and several renowned Indian citizens have written to the Union Health Minister cautioning him against tabling the draft Public Health Bill in the Monsoon Session of Parliament.
“The Public Health (Prevention, Control And Management Of Epidemics, Bio-Terrorism And Disasters) Bill, 2017 and a Prospective Bill of 2022 as discussed in news articles, is straightforwardly violative of Fundamental Rights of the citizens of India and therefore, Ultra Vires of the Indian Constitution. It contravenes several International Treaties and Conventions including the Nuremberg Treaty of 1947 which was enacted to ensure that no country would repeat such inhuman medical atrocities on fellow human beings”, the 12-page letter reads.
“Strangely, the Prospective Bill 2022, in its very intent, cancels the fundamental right to bodily autonomy and integrity, through mandating medical procedures, and with coercion, forced entry of private spaces and such further grossly illegal acts. This is a breath-taking onslaught on fundamental civil liberties,” it adds.
This bill would also repeal the Epidemics Act, 1897, which provides for compensation to citizens if measures like lockdown or night curfew restrictions are imposed. The letter points to lacunae in the process by which this bill was drafted, and suggests that data safety monitoring boards must be set up to determine the safety of measures proposed; such boards must also have expertise to encompass the full breadth of medical systems.
The letter warns that the draft bill ties up with the proposed pandemic treaty of the World Health Organization, and offers a detailed analysis of different clauses of the bill, their “dire implications and illegalities”. 
Chapter 2 of the bill provides for measures that can be taken even if a public health emergency “is likely to arise”. It provides that “any official or person” can enter and inspect, without prior notice, premises where a public health emergency has occurred or is likely to occur. No prosecution is possible if such action is done in “good faith”.
The letter explains that the World Health Organisation (WHO) intent of a global government in health would allow it to call a pandemic rather arbitrarily. It explains that the 2009 swine flu could not have been termed a pandemic, as it resulted in less than 20,000 deaths globally. Those offering the wrong advice to declare it a pandemic were later found to have financial ties to vaccine manufacturers. The WHO is now pushing for a repeat of its failures, the letter states.
The letter writers urge the government to pay heed to practitioners in alternative systems of healing in India, who have long experience of the nutrition problems and the diseases of India’s people. “A ‘Pandemic Treaty' that overrides/overrules national & local governments, would hand supranational powers to an unelectedbureaucrat/expert, formulating policy entirely at his own discretion and on completely subjective criteria. This is potential technocratic globalism and tyranny,” the letter states.
The letter offers an elaborate explanation for why terms like bio-terrorism could cause even more social disruption
The WHO attempt to amend International Health Regulations, 2005, in May 2022 failed as several countries opposed the amendments. “While these amendments did not go through, they may be brought back for deliberation either as modified amendments or in the form of a Pandemic Treaty currently being drafted and scheduled to be ready by 2024, with a working draft to be presented during the World Health Assembly in May 2023,” the letter states.
The letter offers an elaborate explanation for why terms like “bio-terrorism” could cause even more social disruption, as it could bring into play the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 2019, which makes it possible to designate a person a “terrorist” without due process of law.
The conditions under which “decontamination” will be conducted are not clearly defined – “What if someone has an eye infection? Will the removal of eyes be considered?” the letter asks, pointing to the vagueness of the definitions in the draft and the enormous potential for misuse.
The bill provides also for “quarantine”, which it defines as “the restriction of activities and/or separation from others of suspect persons who are not ill or of suspect baggage, containers, conveyances or goods in such a manner as to prevent the possible spread of infection or contamination”.
The word “suspect” is used in case of a crime, and is not appropriate in the context of disease. This definition shows that the “quarantine” could be of people who are not ill, and for an unspecified period of time.
“This entire Bill is violative of Article 19, 21 because it gives the government very wide powers to restrict civil rights and eventually, completely destroying it, and it gives rise to mass continuous surveillance and medical policing. The Bill is not limited to only the Schedules mentioned: it is all-embracing yet undefined and open ended,” the letter notes.
“If the government can insert things into our body, force us to take a medication, and do what it likes without, furthermore, allowing recourse to legal help or the police (which instead of protecting us from unlawfulness, will be co-opted into implementing the governments unlawfulness), then let’s be clear; this Public Health Bill is advocating a slavery system for the Indian people,” the letter notes.
---
*Freelance journalist

Comments

TRENDING

Importance of Bangladesh for India amidst 'growing might' of China in South Asia

By Samara Ashrat*  The basic key factor behind the geopolitical importance of Bangladesh is its geographical location. The country shares land borders with Myanmar and India. Due to its geographical position, Bangladesh is a natural link between South Asia and Southeast Asia.  The country is also a vital geopolitical ally to India, in that it has the potential to facilitate greater integration between Northeast India and Mainland India. Not only that, due to its open access to the Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh has become significant to both China and the US.

Unlike other revolutionaries, Hindutva icon wrote 5 mercy petitions to British masters

By Shamsul Islam*  The Hindutva icon VD Savarkar of the RSS-BJP rulers of India submitted not one, two,or three but five mercy petitions to the British masters! Savarkarites argue: “There are no evidences to prove that Savarkar collaborated with the British for his release from jail. In fact, his appeal for release was a ruse. He was well aware of the political developments outside and wanted to be part of it. So he kept requesting for his release. But the British authorities did not trust him a bit” (YD Phadke, ‘A complex Hero’, "The Indian Expres"s, August 31, 2004)

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

'BBC film shows only tip of iceberg': Sanjiv Bhatt's daughter speaks at top US press club

By Our Representative   The United States' premier journalists' organisation, the National Press Club (NPC), has come down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for recent "attacks on journalists in India." Speaking at the screening of an episode of the BBC documentary “India: The Modi Question,” banned in India, in the club premises, NPC President Eileen O’Reilly said, “Since Modi came to power we have watched with frustration and disappointment as his regime has suppressed the rights of its citizens to a free and independent news media."

Chinese pressure? Left stateless, Rohingya crisis result of Myanmar citizenship law

By Dr Shakuntala Bhabani*  A 22-member team of Myanmar immigration officials visited Rohingya refugee camps in Cox's Bazar to verify more than 400 Rohingya refugees as part of a pilot repatriation project. Does it hold out any hope for the forcibly displaced people to return to their ancestral homes in the Rakhine state of Myanmar? Only time will tell.

China ties up with India, Bangladesh to repatriate Rohingyas; Myanmar unwilling

By Harunur Rasid*  We now have a new hope, thanks to news reports that were published in the Bangladeshi dailies recently. Myanmar has suddenly taken initiatives to repatriate Rohingyas. As part of this initiative, diplomats from eight countries posted in Yangon were flown to Rakhine last week. Among them were diplomats from Bangladesh, India and China.

40,000 Odisha adolescent girls ask CM: Why is scheme to fight malnutrition on paper?

By Our Representative  In unique a postcard campaign to combat malnutrition, aimed at providing dietary diversity, considered crucial during adolescence, especially among girls, signed by about 40,000 adolescent girls from over 10,000 villages, have reminded Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik that his government's Scheme for Adolescent Girls (SAG), which converged with Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman  ( POSHAN ) 2.0 in 2021, is not being implemented in the State.

Natural farming: Hamirpur leads the way to 'huge improvement' in nutrition, livelihood

By Bharat Dogra*  Santosh is a dedicated farmer who along with his wife Chunni Devi worked very hard in recent months to convert a small patch of unproductive land into a lush green, multi-layer vegetable garden. This has ensured year-round supply of organically grown vegetables to his family as well as fetched several thousand rupees in cash sales.

Over-stressed? As Naveen Patnaik turns frail, Odisha 'moves closer' to leadership crisis

By Sudhansu R Das  Not a single leader in Odisha is visible in the horizon who can replace Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. He has ruled Odisha for nearly two and half decades. His father, Biju Patnaik, had built Odisha; he was a daring pilot who saved the life of Indonesia’s Prime Minister Sjahrir and President Sukarno when the Dutch army blocked their exit.