Editorial: Social stigma causes mass hysteria
a
Staff
Reporter
April 17,
2020
Since the outbreak of the coronavirus, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has widely
issued guidelines related to Covid-19, including critical information on prevention.
While it is fair to suggest that the current pandemic has caught the entire world off guard
owing to its slow spread in China at the end of last year, much has also been said about
Africa's preparedness and response to the rapidly spreading virus.
History has shown that pandemics tend to incite social stigma and discrimination. The
dreaded Ebola, which can also spread quickly and for which there is no known cure, has
also provoked wide scale bias against victims, while the stigmatisation of HIV/Aids
sufferers is well documented. Covid-19 is no exception if one of our front page articles of
this week is anything to go by.
The reality is that Covid-19 has brought with it panic, which has created mass hysteria
even within places of work. It is worse in poor communities where grasping Covid-19
information has proven to be a challenge.
It is indeed sad to see that there is a stigma growing not only around people infected
with the virus, but even healthcare workers and other frontliners, including hospital
cleaners, risking their lives.
It must be said that the wellbeing and emotional resilience of our dedicated personnel at
the frontline of the Covid-19 battle is key to the fight against this invisible but deadly
enemy.
Those at the frontline are dealing with unprecedented stress and need to be supported
by all and sundry during these highly unpredictable times.
The situation calls for compassion instead of shaming those infected.
We are all affected by this pandemic. Coronavirus is colour blind and it does not
discriminate.
Although our country is not overwhelmed by a large number of active cases, there is no
time to rest on our laurels, given the threat posed by this virus. As health minister Dr
Kalumbi Shangula emphasised this week, worse is still to come before we can turn the
corner and eliminate Covid-19 as a nation.
In the same vein, it is critical that all stakeholders intensify efforts aimed at rolling out
education awareness campaigns, especially targeting those in remote areas, who may
necessarily not have the privilege of accessing social and mainstream media services.
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