Zimbabwe’s Vaccine Requirements Add Difficulties to the Poor

 

Zimbabwe is requiring its 500,000 government employees and several other groups to get vaccinated² against COVID-19.

This sets the southern African nation apart from nearly every other in Africa. Many African countries are having difficulties in getting enough shots.

Zimbabwe said it has more than enough vaccines⁴. The country bought most of them from China. The government says the difficulty has been the people's lack of trust in the vaccine³. This is partly because they distrust the government. But Zimbabwe's plan is raising worrying questions about the rights of its citizens.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University record information about coronavirus infections around the world. They found that Zimbabwe has reported about 130,000 virus cases and about 4,600 deaths. Those numbers are likely to be too low. However, the virus has not affected⁵ Zimbabwe as strongly as other countries. This might add to the lack of urgency Zimbabweans have in getting vaccinated.

Critics say that Zimbabwe's government is not able to administer the vaccination⁶ effort. Centers sometimes run out of the injections. And poor urban and rural areas have not received shots in recent months.

The critics also say it is cruel to put at risk the livelihoods⁷ of people who are some of the world's most vulnerable.

Dewa Mavhinga is the southern Africa director for Human Rights Watch. He said the government of Zimbabwe should first make sure that vaccines are equally available to all people before requiring them.

Mavingha said distrust in the vaccine should be dealt with "in a way that builds public trust and confidence in the vaccines without the use of force."

Rights activists⁸ describe Zimbabwe's government as authoritarian⁹. It appears ready to continue enforcing its vaccine rules. The government already requires vaccines at religious places and has suggested extending the enforcement to public buses. Public buses are very important to the country's poor. Markets, which millions need to buy or sell goods, might also be restricted.

Those measures would effectively make the vaccine a requirement for nearly all Zimbabwean adults. This includes the two-thirds of the working population who are unlikely to experience enforcement from their employers.

Administering the Vaccine

Some Zimbabweans have waited hours only to be told their vaccination center was closing because of a lack of supplies or employees. People who can receive the second shot have also been turned away from centers which give preference to those seeking the first shot. However, new supplies of the vaccine have arrived recently and lines appear to be getting shorter.

Around 15 percent of Zimbabwe's 15 million people are fully¹⁰ vaccinated. This is above the four percent for all Africans but far from the government's goal of 60 percent. The country has received 12 million shots. They are mostly the Chinese Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines, which require two shots. Johns Hopkins University has found that just over 5 million have been administered.

Debates on the vaccine

Peter Mutasa is the president of Zimbabwe's largest labor¹¹ organization. He said the government is to blame for not vaccinating¹² enough people.

"Workers have been trying to get vaccinated," he said.

Mutasa's organization, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, is fighting enforcements for workers in court. It is one of the only organizations in the country to be publicly opposed to them. Other groups appear unwilling¹³ to speak out for fear of being considered anti-vaccine.

Mutasa is not against the shots. He said connecting them to employment means jobs will be lost "unnecessarily." The economy collapsed¹⁴ just over 10 years ago with high levels of inflation. Nearly half of Zimbabwe's population lives on less than $1.90 a day.

Dr. Agnes Mahomva is the chief organizer of the government's COVID-19 efforts. She defends the requirements, saying they are aimed at "protecting everyone." She argues that they remain voluntary in a way.

"If one doesn't want to be vaccinated, no one is going to come to their house to grab them and vaccinate¹ them," she said.

But Mutasa noted¹⁵ that workers who truly need the money have "no way to say no."

Acholo Jani repairs machines in Zimbabwe. He cannot go back to work until he is fully vaccinated. After waiting at first, he decided¹⁶ to get the shots.

Until he is fully vaccinated, he is selling whatever he can on the streets to make some money while he does not receive his usual pay.

"How are you going to survive without a vaccination card in this country?" he asked.

Words in This Story

vulnerable – adj. easily hurt or harmed physically¹⁷, mentally, or emotionally

confidence –n. a feeling or belief that someone or something is good or has the ability to succeed at something

authoritarian – adj. expecting or requiring people to obey rules or laws: not allowing personal freedom

preference – n. an advantage that is given to some people or things and not to others

grab – v. to quickly take and hold (someone or something) with your hand or arms

1 vaccinate   

vt.给…接种疫苗；种牛痘

参考例句：

• Local health officials then can plan the best times to vaccinate people.这样，当地的卫生官员就可以安排最佳时间给人们接种疫苗。
• Doctors vaccinate us so that we do not catch smallpox.医生给我们打预防针使我们不会得天花。

2 vaccinated   

[医]已接种的，种痘的，接种过疫菌的

参考例句：

• I was vaccinated against tetanus. 我接种了破伤风疫苗。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child? 你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

3 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

4 vaccines   

疫苗，痘苗( vaccine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His team are at the forefront of scientific research into vaccines. 他的小组处于疫苗科研的最前沿。
• The vaccines were kept cool in refrigerators. 疫苗放在冰箱中冷藏。

5 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 vaccination   

n.接种疫苗，种痘

参考例句：

• Vaccination is a preventive against smallpox.种痘是预防天花的方法。
• Doctors suggest getting a tetanus vaccination every ten years.医生建议每十年注射一次破伤风疫苗。

7 livelihoods   

生计，谋生之道( livelihood的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• First came the earliest individualistic pioneers who depended on hunting and fishing for their livelihoods. 走在最前面的是早期的个人主义先驱者，他们靠狩猎捕鱼为生。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• With little influence over policies, their traditional livelihoods are threatened. 因为马赛族人对政策的影响力太小，他们的传统生计受到了威胁。

8 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 authoritarian   

n./adj.专制(的)，专制主义者，独裁主义者

参考例句：

• Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
• The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。

10 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

11 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

12 vaccinating   

给…接种疫苗( vaccinate的现在分词 )； 注射疫苗，接种疫苗

参考例句：

• At first blush, vaccinating the wolves against rabies seems a simple solution. 乍一看来，为狼群注射防狂犬病疫苗是一种简单的办法。
• Also vaccinating children against misers (measles) has saved many lives. 还有，给儿童进行疫苗接种防止麻疹也挽救了许多生命。

13 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

14 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

15 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

16 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

17 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。