After months of political clashes around the world over travel restrictions and restrictions, Europe is at the forefront of a new thorny COVID-19 controversy: vaccine “passports”.
As more and more people are vaccinated against the new coronavirus that has killed more than 2.5 million people worldwide, there are discussions about whether government-issued vaccination evidence should serve as permission for a range of coveted activities – mingle with friends, go to concerts, get on planes or cross borders.
For much of last year, Europe served as a coronavirus thermometer, withstanding massive outbreaks and overburdened health systems before those same crises hit the United States. And, like previous disputes, national disagreements over vaccine passports are unfolding in a scenario of heightened temperaments and pandemic fatigue.
With notable exceptions like Israel, vaccine approvals remain a hypothetical issue in most countries. But across Europe, bioethicists, bartenders and business travelers are weighing the ramifications of dividing the public into rich and poor in terms of inoculation.
A “status certificate”, as it has been dubbed in Britain, could create “a two-tier society,” said Sam Grant of the advocacy group Liberty, which campaigns for civil liberties. “Some people may have access to support and freedom, while others are excluded,” he said.
Britain, which completed its separation from the European Union earlier this year, is enjoying a much more robust vaccine launch than its neighbors on the continent, with almost a third of the population having received at least one vaccine. This gave additional impetus to the vaccine passport issue, with a formal government review to be completed by June.
Meanwhile, the EU’s executive arm, the European Commission, has signaled that it would move to create a vaccine certification system to be used in its 27 member states. Ursula von der Leyen, the committee chairman, said this week that a legislative proposal for a “Digital Green Pass” would be proposed this month – which is already generating some discomfort and discord within the bloc.
Southern European countries hungry for tourism, such as Italy, Cyprus and Greece, are eager to see the EU adopt vaccine documentation to pave the way for international visitors. But EU heavyweights, like Germany and France, are much more cautious, citing concerns about personal privacy and social discrimination.
In France, the prospect of a “sanitaire pass” is intertwined with concerns about the slow release of vaccines in the country. Only 4% of adults in France have been vaccinated, leaving many people who want injections unable to obtain one and therefore ineligible for any measure that may occur.
“It is a type of discrimination, in the sense that some people will succeed and others will not,” said Lionel Chassagne, 52, a currently unemployed flight attendant.
At the same time, it is feared that linking privileges to health passports would unfairly penalize those who hesitate to vaccinate for religious, philosophical or medical reasons, which is proving to be a very important group in France. President Emmanuel Macron has promised that vaccines will never be mandatory, but a pass can be an incentive for those who just need a little push to get the injection.
“If there is a passport, I will want to be vaccinated, but I might not want it any other way,” said Ebony Wallace, 23, a French e-commerce student. The government created a national online survey last month that still accepts comments on the merits of the approval.
In some European countries, the debate over the vaccine passport is obscured by the past. Germany’s Nazi era made it sensitive by pointing out certain groups as unworthy of privileges granted to others – the striking historical parallel being the persecution of Jews, first through social restrictions, then the creation of ghettos and, finally, extermination.
In former East Germany, the supposedly egalitarian communist government provided lavish perks to a leading elite, who drove Western automobiles and drank Western alcoholic beverages. Decades later, the idea of demanding specific privileges for a limited group is still troubling.
A survey by ARD television last month found that 68% of Germans were opposed to any special treatment for those who were vaccinated, with only 28% in favor. Chancellor Angela Merkel said she is opposed to such privileges until everyone in Germany has at least one vaccination offer, which is not expected to happen until September.
But for some, linking passports for vaccines to the personal choice of whether or not to get the vaccine carries the risk of coercion.
“It is an indirect obligation to obtain vaccines,” said Jana Tschitschke, 43, who works in public relations in Berlin. “If vaccines are really good and safe, the benefits for the whole society will outweigh the interests of a small group of people. But I don’t know when we’re going to be sure of that. “
Some countries are debating whether something smaller than a formal vaccine passport could be used for benefits close to home, such as going to the gym or the theater, instead of serving as a mandatory travel document. France already has an app called Todos contra Covid, which could eventually provide a QR code to enter public places.
Across the EU, as well as in Britain, data protection is an especially controversial issue. It was one of the key points cited in a study on health passes published last month by the School of Law at the University of Exeter.
The report’s author, Ana Beduschi, cited “confidential personal health information” used to “create a new distinction between individuals based on their state of health, which can then be used to determine the degree of freedoms and rights that individuals can enjoy ”.
In the future, linking vaccine status to work and school attendance may trigger disputes. Forcing employees to be vaccinated would be illegal, said Volker Lipp, vice president of the Ethics Council of Germany, an independent government-funded body, but said private companies could establish terms and conditions for customers to have access to certain services .
A major German travel company, All Tours, recently announced that it would accept only customers who could prove they were vaccinated for travel reservations next winter to sunny destinations like Greece. This caused a storm on social media and drew criticism from some public officials.
In some sectors, however, there is a debate as to whether we should even enter the debate. Some European officials prefer to avoid the problem for the time being, saying that relatively low vaccination rates make any decision-making premature.
Others, however, argue that the issue needs to be fully aired now, before government hands are forced by events.
In Paris, Deolinda Ribeiro, who traveled extensively for more than a quarter of a century working for the UN cultural agency, UNESCO, said that evidence of inoculation against long-standing diseases such as yellow fever is a common entry requirement, and the same may apply in the future for the new coronavirus.
In France, Ribeiro said, a health pass can mark a return to a beloved lifestyle of dating in cozy cafes and movie nights.
“This will allow us to get back to our normal lives,” she said. “It has been difficult for young people – they can’t even flirt.”
Special correspondents El-Faizy and Kirschbaum reported from Paris and Berlin, respectively, and editor Laura King, from Washington. Special correspondent Christina Boyle in London contributed to this report.
This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.