Democracies contain epidemics most effectively
People living under freely elected governments have been more responsive to lockdown measures
MANY PEOPLE would look at the covid-19 pandemic and conclude that democracies are bad at tackling infectious diseases. America and the EU had months to prepare after China sounded the alarm in January. Both have subsequently suffered more than 300 confirmed deaths per 1m people. China’s Communist Party reports an official death rate that is 99% lower, and has trumpeted its apparent success in containing the outbreak domestically.
This article appeared in the Graphic detail section of the print edition under the headline “Out in the open”
From the June 6th 2020 edition
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