Thread by @astroehlein on Thread Reader App

In blocking wider vaccine production globally, the EU takes a neocolonialist approach to the pandemic, saying:

❗️ we're in charge;

❗️ we decide who lives & dies;

❗️ we may give you some charity later if we feel generous & if you behave.

It’s arrogant & self-destructive.

From the beginning, the EU has been blocking & delaying wider vaccine production globally by obstructing the #TRIPSwaiver, a proposal to temporarily waive some intellectual property (IP) rules on vaccines & other health products.

hrw.org/news/2021/06/0…

The EU's policy goes against all expert advice and the majority of governments in the world.

EU leaders arrogantly think they know better...

And, of course, EU leaders are prioritising pharma company profits over human lives.

They won't even listen to anyone else.
corporateeurope.org/en/2021/05/com…

EU leaders try to hide what their doing by saying they are donating a paltry number of doses - tens or hundreds of millions - when the problem is that the world needs at least:

💥 11 billion doses.

To understand their deceit, you have to understand the scale of the problem...

And "at least 11 billion doses" is a conservative estimate.

Some say 14 billion: businessinsider.com/bill-gates-14-…

Others, 20 billion: investigate-europe.eu/en/2020/vaccin…

And pharma companies' talk about 3rd shots for those already vaccinated, thus increasing demand: cnbc.com/2021/04/15/pfi…

And we need those doses fast enough to outpace the emergence of variants, which is currently not happening.

➡️ The virus is winning, because we're producing vaccine doses too slowly.
theguardian.com/society/2021/j…

It is only a matter of time before a variant emerges that is resistant to current vaccines.

Medical experts have been warning about this: oxfam.org/en/press-relea…

Pharma companies have been counting on it: bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

So, just think about that:

⚠️ We can't defeat the virus and end the pandemic unless we produce enough vaccine doses fast enough.

And yet...

⚠️ The decision on how many doses to produce & when currently lies with those who only profit more the longer the pandemic goes on.

The EU, UK and a few others have been providing political protection to the pharma companies, so they can control the level of vaccine production.

Obviously, they will set production levels to maximise their profits.

Great for them.

Awful for the rest of us.

Make no mistake: the EU- and UK-approved business model is this merry-go-round of death...

A little charity does not make up for the death & suffering that EU & UK policy is causing in low- and middle-income countries.

It reminds me of the murderous European colonists arguing, "But we built schools and hospitals! Aren't we generous? You should thank us!"

You died in your millions mining silver & gold to boost our riches.

You died in your millions collecting the latex for rubber to increase our wealth.

You will die in your millions serving as human variant factories to maximise our profits.

What the EU & UK are doing here is sickening in every sense of the word.

Millions have already died in the global pandemic.

The longer it goes on, the more of us will die.

And yet they stick to their policy of endless pandemic.

The only way to end the global pandemic is to treat it as a global pandemic and expand production of vaccines and other medical products as rapidly as possible as widely as possible.

For this, we need patent waivers, and we need the EU & UK to stop blocking and delaying them.

The neocolonialist mindset in EU & UK policy circles sadly runs very deep, but we can push them to overcome it.

Already the US has swapped sides, and some EU member states & ministers, as well as the EU Parliament, now support wider vaccine production.
politico.eu/article/europe…

Meanwhile...
theguardian.com/world/2021/jul…

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