Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Mahamat says the travel restrictions imposed on African countries due to the emergence of the Omicron COVID-19 variant is an injustice against the continent.
Omicron variant was first detected in South Africa and subsequently labelled a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Consequently, several countries in the developed world imposed a travel ban on South Africa and its neighboring countries.
Mahamat, speaking during a news conference at the UN headquarters in New York on Wednesday, said: “They are condemning a country (South Africa) for having been transparent because its experts have worked tirelessly to inform the international community of the emergence of new variants,”
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“It hasn’t been scientifically proven that these types of measures are able to deal with this type of issue. It’s clearly, as you say, an expression rather of a form of injustice. It’s immoral to condemn Africa in that way.
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“We are a world, a global world and when facing an enemy like the virus, like COVID-19, humankind as a whole must go hand in hand to fight the virus because a man’s life is man’s life.”
He added: “Our message to the world as a whole is that we need to keep a cool head. We need to follow the well-being of humankind as a whole,”
“We need to genuinely demonstrate greater solidarity and justice. That’s the very least we can ask for, namely from our leaders, our political and social leaders.”
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