JCHS urges Prime Minister Holness to reject US proposal at WHO Assembly

Well, no one really knows just yet or at least we will have to wait until May 28 when the WHO concludes its 75th World Health Assembly in Switzerland.

Already in Switzerland for this summit is a Jamaican delegation headed by Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton, who is accompanied by Chief Medical Officer Dr. Jacquiline Bisasor- McKenzie among others.

But as the experts gather to discuss a raft of health-related issues already impacting or has the potential to impact our lives, critics of the global health authority have sounded the alarm bells over a proposal submitted by the United States, the WHO’s largest financial donor.

In its submission to the WHO the US wish to see changes to the International Health Regulations (2005), which in its view will strengthen the WHO preparedness for and response to health emergencies.

However, with key words such as ‘may’ and ‘consult’ being replaced with ‘shall’ and ‘inform’ in the US document to the health assembly, many individuals and groups around the globe are concern that member states will be ceding its power to the WHO should a health crisis occur.

One such group is the Jamaica Coalition for a Healthy Society (JCHS), an influential lobby group comprising some of the island’s noted figures in the areas of legal and constitutional matters and health. Only a couple of days ago the group wrote a letter to Prime Minister Andrew Holness urging him to reject the US proposed recommendation because the WHO will have greater powers in general over sovereign nations if adopted.

Of particular concern to the JCHS is amendments inserted in Articles 12 and 13 under health regulations.

With regard to Article 12 the local lobby group said it “currently makes provision for the Director-General to not only consult with the State Party but to also have the agreement of the State Party in certain circumstances. Further if there is no agreement, there is a certain protocol to be adopted. The proposal deletes need for the agreement of the State Party in these circumstances thus again diminishing the role of the State Party”.

However there are aspects in the document indicating that the Director-General must consult with a country on the verge or experiencing a health epidemic. Such a country also has the right to reject or accept the WHO’s advise or assistance on how to manage a crisis from a health perspective.

Under the current rules of engagement regarding a public health emergency of international concern unfolding in a particular country or region, the Director-General must consult an emergency committee before making a final determination. But under the new rules that the US would prefer to see implemented, it appears that the Director-General will be given discretionary powers to act in a unilateral manner as he “may” and not shall in instances seek the views of the emergency committee on making “appropriate temporary recommendations”.

Throughout the proposal the wording is too ambiguous for comfort the JCHS is contending. They further argued that the proposal from the US seeks to grant the WHO greater powers to enforce compliance with member states being “monitored more closely” if the Director-General believes a potential outbreak is on the horizon even if the government of that nation believe otherwise.

“Will coercive powers be used against a State to facilitate ‘assistance’?” asked JCHS member Shirley Richards, who is an attorney.

This Richards noted in a response to Old Harbour News potentially could “diminished the role of the State Party in decisions relating to the management of its own response in these health emergencies”.

“On the face of it, these recommendations, if adopted, will result in Jamaica ceding its sovereignty in relation to these matters to an unelected and foreign body, the WHO. We view this as wholly unsatisfactory and urgently request that the Government of Jamaica to reject these proposals and recommend an appropriate alternative that will both serve the best interest of the people of Jamaica, and retain our national sovereignty.

“The USA’s recommendations are even more concerning as it is unclear whether the countries that followed the WHO’s recommendations on COVID-19, experienced the best outcomes in the handling of the COVID-19 Pandemic,” said JCHS chairman Dr Wayne West in a letter to the prime minister.

The Office of the Prime Minister is yet to respond, West said to the concerns raised by the JCHS in its missive dated May 16, 2022.

What is clear though is that similar concerns are being expressed in other countries with one petition launched in the UK gathering more than 140,000 signatures advising the government against signing “any WHO Pandemic Treaty unless it is approved via public referendum”. Under UK law petitions that received in excess of 100,000 signatures are listed for debate in the House of Commons.

Plenty eyes and ears will be on the outcomes from the summit in the Swiss capital. It is likely to determine as well whether or not the skeptics were just being alarmists or the WHO and its Director-General will have greater autonomy over the nations of our world on the premise of a health pandemic. 

The world is watching.