'My family won't see vaccines for years' - Cork activist calls for end to global vaccine inequality

Lives can be saved if the Government gives its backing to a waiver that would allow the Global South to produce Covid-19 vaccines, writes Majo Rivas

The vast majority of people in Ireland understand the importance of the Covid-19 vaccine. This is reflected by the impressive uptake of the vaccine.

TO SAY that the last 17 months have been very emotional is an understatement. I have publicly spoken about grieving the loss of my father and not being able to mourn with my loved ones who are an ocean away. 

I do not particularly enjoy publicly displaying grief, but vaccine inequality and fear of losing more loved ones before I get to see them again leave me with no other choice. Apparently, I am a vaccine activist, but I am only doing what I think most people would do if they were in my shoes.

The vast majority of people in Ireland understand the importance of the Covid-19 vaccine. This is reflected by the impressive uptake of the vaccine. We were all very proud of young people queuing patiently to access vaccines and protect themselves and others. 

Children from age 12 are now able to get vaccinated too; a relief, especially for children with health conditions that put them at higher risk of severe illness from Covid-19.

But as I see younger people and children in Ireland accessing safe and effective vaccines, I hear even talk of boosters, I feel a degree of frustration and anger. 

I have nephews and nieces I love very much, who, because of where they live, may not be able to access vaccines for a few more years.

Many young people and children in the Global South are suffering immensely because of Covid-19. It is estimated that Covid-19 killed 2,060 children under the age of nine in Brazil, including 1,302 babies.

Recently, The Lancet published its findings on the wider impact of Covid-19 on families across the globe. It is estimated 1,134,000 children have lost a primary caregiver, including at least one parent or custodial parent. 

In many places in the Global South, healthcare and frontline workers and people who are at very high risk of illness and death from Covid-19 are still waiting to access vaccines. Children are dying of Covid-19.

Children are losing parents and loved ones who care for them to Covid-19. This will continue until everyone everywhere can access vaccines, treatments, and diagnostics. How can we, in Ireland, turn our backs to this suffering and go back to “normal”?

It has been 10 months since the governments of India and South Africa, with the support of 62 other members of the World Trade Organization, proposed a Trips waiver.

The Trips waiver would temporarily suspend intellectual property rights for Covid-19 vaccines, treatments, and diagnostics, allowing countries of the Global South to produce vaccines. It is a simple, clear ask: to be allowed to make the treatments.

This would help to break Big Pharma monopolies and increase supplies so that there are enough vaccines for everyone, everywhere. The EU, and Ireland as one of its members, have been and still are opposing it. 

Majo Rivas: "The outpouring of support of people in Ireland shows us, once again, that the people are ahead of the Government and that we understand the need for global solidarity."

They are working against wider access to vaccines — vaccines which are an undeniable public good and that were publicly funded. So many lives have been lost due to selfishness and greed.

For months, I have been writing to my local TDs, including the Taoiseach, begging the Government to voice its support for the Trips waiver. Trips waivers were designed as a ‘break in case of emergency’-type response. If this global pandemic is not an emergency worthy of breaking the glass, then what is?

I have been waiting for months to hear from the Taoiseach on whether his Government will support the Trips waiver. Nothing. Publicly, he has spoken about how many vaccines Europe is exporting. What the Taoiseach is not saying is that Europe is exporting vaccines because it continues to oppose vaccines being produced in other parts of the world.

The Government’s silence regarding the Trips waiver, especially considering its current seat in the UN Security Council, is deafening and nothing short of scandalous. Every day of silence allows global vaccine inequality to worsen, every day of delay means more lives lost to Covid-19. 

Those lives are not just numbers, each of them is a person. Each of them is someone’s loved one, someone’s mother or child, someone’s friend. Someone’s nephew. Someone’s niece.

Recently, members of the Government proudly shared the news that the Irish people had donated over 1m Covid-19 vaccines to people in the Global South through Unicef’s Get a Vaccine Give a Vaccine campaign.

This is incredible news, illustrating the generosity of the Irish people. But, the reality is that donations are not enough, the issue has been and continues to be supply of vaccines.

There needs to be mass production in the Global South for the Global South. Unicef is leading a vaccine procurement and supply operation as part of the Covax facility. Covax has been struggling to get enough supply of the vaccine, due to Global North countries stockpiling vaccines while simultaneously blocking the Trips waiver.

The outpouring of support of people in Ireland shows us, once again, that the people are ahead of the Government and that we understand the need for global solidarity. We now need the Government to support the Trips waiver and walk its talk.

Charity will not fix the problem of vaccine inequality, we must demand vaccine equity. I am, once again, asking the Government to stand for what is right. I am also asking the people of Ireland to demand the same and support this ask for a People’s Vaccine so that everyone, everywhere can access vaccines.

• Majo Rivas is Paraguayan-Irish and lives in Cork. This article is written in a personal capacity.