Mexican election campaigning in a coffin, flights to nowhere and Covid chaos in North Korea
Welcome to the Infodemic and, if you just joined us, thank you for signing up! We are tracking how disinformation surrounding the coronavirus crisis is reshaping our world. Here are the narratives, both real and fake, that have grabbed our team’s attention this week and deserve yours.
As cases rise in Asia, governments are growing desperate, enforcing ever harsher crackdowns on individuals who break virus regulations. This week, in the Philippines, a man died after he was forced to do 300 squats as punishment for breaking the country’s strict curfew. Meanwhile, in Malaysia, social media users who are caught spreading fake news and rumors about the vaccine will face police action, according to the country’s health minister.
In Mexico, a congressional candidate is drawing attention to the country’s coronavirus crisis from a coffin. Carlos Mayorga kicked off his campaign at a rally in Chihuahua state on Tuesday, lying inside a gold-trimmed casket, flanked by aides dressed in personal protective equipment and carrying enormous bouquets. The funereal scene was a nod to more than 200,000 people who have died from Covid-19 in Mexico, which has the world’s third-highest pandemic death toll. Politicians, Mayorga said, “have remained silent about the chaotic Covid situation.” We can only imagine what he has in store for his next event.
And this week’s Infodemic award goes to Somali president Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, who apparently lied about receiving a Covid-19 vaccine. In March, days after the first batches of AstraZeneca reached Somalia, the president’s press office put out a release with a photograph showing Farmajo being injected and citing his “strong commitment to save the health of the country.” According to Horn Observer, the jab was fake. Three health workers who witnessed the photoshoot told journalists that the syringe was empty. Another official confirmed the rumor, saying that Farmajo didn’t trust the local healthcare system and hoped to get a real vaccine in Turkey.