By Elishya Perera
AUCKLAND (CWBN)_ The Coronavirus pandemic has inundated the nations of the world, and has altered the pace, fabric and nature of our lives. The virus has resulted in 40 million infections and more than a million fatalities globally. The wider consequences for societies, national economies and global relations will be a lasting impact. However, it is not just the global pandemic that has left people on edge. Anti-government protests, trade wars and geopolitical tensions have created a sense of tension around the world and have made people wander what recovery would look like and when it would happen.
Global leaders proven to be ill equipped to handle a pandemic
Even though the virus was first detected in China in December last year, it wasn’t until a few months later that the rest of the world started to comprehend its severity. And even if governments were aware, many leaders chose to downplay its intensity, in order to control the economic impact and to avoid a frenzy.
For instance, US President Donald Trump regularly flouted social distancing guidelines and refused to wear a mask at White House events and campaign rallies, amidst public health officials’ urgent requests to educate the public on the lethal nature of COVID-19. During a campaign rally in Ohio the President even claimed that the virus poses little threat to young people and “affects virtually nobody”. However, later it was revealed that the president intentionally downplayed its deadly nature as a damage-control effort, for reasons best known to himself. Not long after this revelation, the President himself contracted Covid-19, , along with the first lady.
Meanwhile, President Trump was not the only one downplaying the virus. At a time when Brazil was the country with the second most infections worldwide, with more than 330,000 confirmed cases, the country’s President, Jair Bolsonaro, dismissed the virus as a “little flu”, and urged businesses to reopen. He even went so far as to rally against lockdown measures, and disregarded social distancing guidelines to join his fellow protesters.
Anti-racism and anti-government protests
In the meantime, anti-lockdown protests were not the only protests which made headlines this year. Just a few months ago, protests and rallies took place across the US against racism and police brutality, sparked by the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, who died in police custody. Demonstrators claimed that racism has long been a part of the US and that the protests were a call on officials to address longstanding systemic racism and inequalities. Even though the protests were peaceful at the beginning, they eventually led to civil unrest, looting and severe damage to property.
Meanwhile in another part of the world, thousands of protesters marched through Belarusian capital Minsk for 10 straight weeks, demanding President Alexander Lukashenko’s resignation. After more than two decades in power, Lukashenko claimed another round of victory in the country’s elections held in August. Often described as Europe’s “last dictator”, he has tried to preserve elements of Soviet communism. Belarus security forces have arrested more than 13,000 people so far, including hundreds of women. They have been deploying water cannon and blockading streets with barbed wire and heavy machinery, and have also fired rubber bullets in response to demonstrators throwing stones.
Geopolitical tensions
Even though geopolitical tensions between the Unites States and Iran have prevailed over decades, in January this year, the tensions between the two nations reached a new peak, when an American drone killed a top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, in Baghdad, and Tehran retaliated with a ballistic missile attack on US forces in Iraq that injured dozens.
Amid escalating US-Iran tensions, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres stated that geopolitical tensions are at their highest level in this century. “The New Year has begun with our world in turmoil. We are living in dangerous times,” Guterres said.
Meanwhile, in the east, months long border disputes continue between India and China. The border standoff began in May this year and escalated in June. This turned out to be the deadliest clash between the two sides in decades, with 20 Indian soldiers killed and many other injured, while China did not confirm any casualties. Even though several military, diplomatic and political level discussions have been held between the two nations with the objective of ending the standoff in the disputed area, nevertheless satisfactory progress has not yet been achieved.
A glimmer of hope in a dreadful era for humanity
As the UN Secretary General mentioned, we are most certainly living in “dangerous times”. With business forced to shut down and hundreds of millions of people unemployed, the pandemic is expected to push up to 115 million people into extreme poverty by next year. Even though governments around the world have taken unprecedented steps to support workers and businesses during the outbreak, many of the world’s biggest economies are expected fall into recession in the coming months.
Amidst this endless chaos and disarray all across the globe, a remote island nation of 5 million people, located 2,500 miles east of Australia, held their general election just a couple of days ago. The New Zealand election, which took place a little more than two weeks before US Election Day, offered hope that democracy can still be fully functional, during these unprecedented times. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern achieved a landslide victory on Saturday (Oct 17), and made history as the first party to claim an outright majority in the 120-seat Parliament.
This year, Ardern’s swift and effective action against the COVID-19 pandemic, enacting one of the world’s strictest lockdowns to crush community transmission, has been one of the world’s most successful pandemic responses. The nation stamped out of the second wave of the virus a few weeks ago, and as the rest of the world grapples with a surge in Covid-19 cases, over 30,000 fans gathered at the Wellington Stadium, to witness the rugby match between New Zealand and Australia.
However, Ardern’s deft handling of the pandemic was not the only factor which increased her popularity. She also won international plaudits for her empathetic handling of the Christchurch mosque attack in 2019, donning a headscarf as a mark of respect as she mourned with the Muslim community. The once small-town takeout store worker has been widely praised for her strong and compassionate leadership, and is considered to be the country’s most popular PM in a century.
Meanwhile, as thousands of people from different parts of the world carry out anti-racism and anti-government protests for weeks, it is quite evident that Ardern’s landslide victory amply demonstrates the power of inclusive leadership. The Kiwis have placed a high level of trust in the government and institutions and have elected the most inclusive parliament, setting an example to the rest of the world. Of the 64 seats won by the Labour Party, more than half of those are female candidates. It also has 16 indigenous Maori MPs, the first MP of African origin, one MP of Indian origin and one of Sri Lankan origin.
Even though Ardern, who is praised for her strong and compassionate leadership, contested against Judith Collins, known as the “Crusher”, for her tough policies and sharp quips, both parties carried out their election campaigns with admiration and civility, in stark contrast to the nasty, distasteful politics elsewhere in the world. Collins insisted that Ardern only offers “love and a hug”, while she would provide “hope and a job” instead. However, the historic victory scored by Ardern testifies that love and a hug is what the world needs, in this dreadful era for humanity.
