On Nov. 18, Dr. Angelique Coetzee, a private practitioner and chair of the South African Medical Association, warned about a new coronavirus variant after a family of four with complaints of extreme fatigue tested positive. The patients with the new variant called omicron had different symptoms from other COVID-19 patients, she said.

"The symptoms are very different, but milder than those I have treated before," she stated. She said she saw some patients who recovered in two days and didn’t even have complaints such as loss of smell or taste.

Despite that, many Western countries rushed to introduce restrictions on travelers from Africa. In a televised speech, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa called for the immediate end of the restricitons, saying "we call upon all those countries that have imposed travel bans on our country and our southern African sister countries to immediately and urgently reverse their decisions."

He explained that "the only thing the prohibition on travel will do is to further damage the economies of the affected countries and undermine their ability to respond to, and recover from, the pandemic.

"These restrictions are unjustified and unfairly discriminate against our country and our southern African sister countries."

So what?

Global media funded by drug cartels, social media giants and financial circles rushed to mock Ramaphosa's words. However, the statement by the World Health Organization (WHO) shows that the African countries' demand is reasonable.

The WHO acknowledged that omicron is no more contagious than other mutations of the virus, and there is no evidence of more severe disease or more rapid spread compared to other mutations.

Also, urging countries not to rush to close their borders, the WHO stated that while travel restrictions have a role in reducing the spread of COVID-19, they "put a heavy burden on lives and livelihoods." The organization advised governments to not be unnecessarily intrusive and adopt a science-based approach.

Well, if the measures taken in the atmosphere of fear fueled by the media are not for the benefit of 8 billion people, who are they for? Because, the closures, which even the WHO admits do not have a function in protecting public health, cause high inflation and interest rates all over the world, thus hurting the pockets of the disadvantaged majority. It magnifies the "hunger pandemic," which has tripled coronavirus-related deaths in the world, especially in Africa.

Money and restriction

So, the answer is obvious for those looking for it. Of course, as variants are derived and closing scenarios are discussed, those who make more money from it are very satisfied. Because, citing the extraordinary conditions of the pandemic, they increase the prices of commodities such as freight and oil and make astronomical profits. As a matter of fact, they want the state of panic that disrupts the natural balance of world trade and paves the way for speculative money movements to continue.

Just looking at the balance sheets of the logistics industry, which doubles its pre-pandemic profits these days, is enough for us to understand that they will avoid "no cost" so that the variants do not run out.