Mandatory vaccination: A seamless drift into dictatorship

Forced vaccination of workers is presently the issue that could spark decisive social protest as is happening in many parts of Europe.  The Andrew Holness administration is pro-vaccination but politically concerned that legislating forced vaccination could cause negative, political repercussions – especially at the polls. They have chosen, therefore, to support those private companies which have begun to impose vaccination mandates on their workers.  This form of treachery must not stand.

A handful of workers from CariMed, Digicel and AIC have chosen to legally challenge their employers’ vaccine mandate. The approach of these two companies  is identical and suggests that all the companies which are demanding vaccine compliance from their workers got together and agreed on a joint approach.  Indeed, their joint approach may have already been laid down for them by ‘Big Businesses’ abroad. According to one writer on the subject “companies have long led on important social issues, collectively constructing social norms through their policies and action”. Capitalist world domination, in other words.

The mandate says simply that all workers must vaccinate and present proof of vaccination by a prescribed date. Those who fail to vaccinate for one reason or another will be required to present a negative bi-weekly PCR test. The cost of testing is at the worker’s expense (about J$20,000 per test). And, failure to test will result in the worker being required to stay home at her or his expense, using up any accumulated vacation time.  And once that is used up it is clear that the worker will have to quit if the high cost of testing cannot be afforded. 

The Judge trying the case, Justice Sonya Wint-Blair, has so far refused to consider this mandatory vaccination policy as a violation of employees’ constitutional rights. She sees it as a job contract issue which can be resolved at that level. She further refuses to impose a restraining order on the vaccine policy until the matter is resolved in the court. Her decision to refuse to impose a restraining order is clearly based on a belief that this vaccination policy is an important part of fighting COVID, and therefore sending a message as to what her verdict will be eventually.  The vaccine mandate stays! maybe, with a few adjustments.

What is important for us to understand is that the constitution grants us “life, liberty and security of the person.” And what does this mean?  It means that you have a right to your body and the only time you lose that right is when you violate someone else’s “life, liberty and security of the person.”  And, as it stands, it is only the loss of liberty or imprisonment  that is the punishment,  not death or controlling the actual body of the prisoner, who still has bodily rights.

The constitution also says that both the State and civilians have a duty to respect your constitutional rights, and that includes your employer.

For an employer to demand, against your will, that you put a vaccine into your body, whether good or bad, is a violation of your constitutional right to your life, liberty and security of the person.
The constitution also guarantees you the right to equality before the law, humane treatment, and the right to freedom from discrimination based on social class.

In pursuit of its own agenda i.e.  “constructing social norms through their policies and action” the business class is forcing vaccination on its employees without concern for the very science which they claim to rely on.  For example, it has been stated by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO) and others, that even though one may take the vaccine, it doesn’t  preclude you from still contracting the COVID virus or from passing it on. This is precisely what is happening in Israel, one of the countries with the highest rate of vaccination. So what is the purpose of taking it in the first place? This is a question that is never addressed by the powers that be in a serious way. And that is why there is such a low vaccination rate in Jamaica. The people are smarter than the politicians, the health experts and the enforcers think.

To demand therefore that only unvaccinated employees must get tested is a blatant form of discrimination and a clear disregard for the science since no one, vaccinated or unvaccinated, is excluded from contracting the virus and passing it on.

So whatever the motivation behind mandatory vaccination, it proves to be a blatant form of discrimination against the unvaccinated and a total disregard for the science. There is evidence in other countries that this form of discrimination will get worse in Jamaica.

It is on this basis, therefore, that not only must the lawyers for the workers  make a more aggressive argument before the court on this discriminatory and unscientific aspect of the mandate, but we the people have a duty to stand up for our constitutional and human rights since this science-less discrimination is spreading throughout every aspect of our social lives.

Mandatory vaccination by the State or by companies is nothing more than them being sales agents for the pharmaceutical companies. The politicians get the bulk of the sales commissions and businesses play their expected role of supporting the State – which supports them. We wish there was a way to examine the bank accounts of the politicians who are directly pushing the vaccine mandate, such as the Prime Minister and the Minister of Health.

The deeper issue, however, is that this COVID Pandemic is creating conditions for the State to normalize disregard of citizens’ constitutional and human rights. This is unacceptable and we must not allow it to happen.

Whether through the courts or in the streets, we have a right and a duty to put an end to this seamless drift into DICTATORSHIP.

The People’s Anti-Corruption Movement will soon be announcing the next stage of our protest movement against DICTATORSHIP.  We must take to the streets and be bold like Sam Sharpe. 

Lloyd D'Aguilar is the convenor of the People's Anti-Corruption Movement. Send feedback to lgdaguilar@yahoo.com.