Hanne Bosselaers is a doctor at Medicine for the People in Molenbeek. In 2021–2013, she spent four months volunteering at the Union of Health Work Committees, Viva Salud’s partner organisation in Gaza. We asked her how the vaccination campaign is going in Palestine and why she supports the European Citizens« Initiative »No Profit from the Pandemic’.
How is the vaccination campaign going in Palestine?
“With Gaza under a blockade, it’s already very difficult to find basic medicines, so organising a vaccination campaign seems to me to be a real challenge. A cold chain is required, with working fridges and the certainty that the electricity supply won’t be cut off, because otherwise the vaccines cannot be stored at the correct temperature and their quality will be compromised. I think it will take a tremendous effort to launch an effective vaccination campaign once the vaccines arrive.”.
It won’t be for lack of volunteers – there are plenty of them. And we’ll certainly find people to administer the vaccinations. Palestinians are always ready to help their neighbours, so I’m not worried about that, but the logistics of the vaccination programme will be very demanding, and we’re also dealing with a very vulnerable population facing many mental health and physical health issues. It will therefore be very difficult to persuade people to get vaccinated. What’s more, there must be enough vaccines of a sufficiently high standard. So there are many challenges.”
Would lifting the patents on coronavirus vaccines be helpful?
“The lifting of the patent on the Covid vaccine is very important for Palestinians, but also for all other citizens of the world. Because without large-scale production that makes full use of all production capacities, we will never be able to produce enough vaccines. As long as the vaccine remains in the hands of a handful of multinational pharmaceutical companies, production will be too slow, and Palestinians are certainly not at the front of the queue to be able to buy large quantities of vaccines with their limited budget and all the logistical problems caused by the occupation. And so yes, for Palestinians to be vaccinated, it is essential to revoke the patent.
As we have seen, Israel has vaccinated its citizens very quickly and on a large scale, but the Palestinians have not been able to benefit from this. There is not only a physical wall, but also a major public health barrier between the two parts of the same country. It is therefore absolutely essential that patent restrictions be lifted, so that countries such as Palestine, too, can have access to the vaccine.”
“That’s why I’m backing the European Citizens” Initiative for a vaccine for all. Are you?”
Interview and video : Logan Danhier
