How authoritarian governments are using COVID-19 to expand their control

To fight COVID-19, governments across the world have had to implement a broad range of restrictions that temporarily infringe on the rights and freedoms of their citizens. Most countries recognize that these extraordinary measures are indeed temporary and will be repealed in the near future. But there is a growing concern that authoritarian and anti-democratic regimes will continue to impose these constraints even after the public health crisis has passed.

“We could have a parallel epidemic of authoritarian and repressive measures following close if not on the heels of a health epidemic,” Fionnuala Ni Aolain, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on counterterrorism and human rights, told the New York Times. And as Times reporter Selam Gebrekidan warns, the new laws “broaden state surveillance, allow governments to detain people indefinitely and infringe on freedoms of assembly and expression, they could also shape civic life, politics and economies for decades to come.”

Here are five examples of countries using the COVID-19 pandemic to impose harsh new controls over their own people.

This Week at the ERLC

• Chelsea Patterson Sobolik and other panelists were featured in a write-up about the ERLC’s Women at Work event. Sobolik also has a piece at The Hill about removing roadblocks to generosity.

• Russell Moore was interviewed on BBC’s All Things Considered.

What You Need to Read

• ERLC Staff with an Explainer: How to make sure your kids are safe on the internet

The COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped the way almost all activities take place. Events like school, church, and regular social gatherings have shifted to being virtual experiences rather than in-person meetings due to the safety guidelines. Moving to an online format has presented numerous challenges, but one of the biggest challenges we face is how to make sure that kids are safe on the internet. Internet safety for children has always been a concern, but increased use of technology and the amount of time spent in front of a screen has elevated the need for intentional measures to protect our children.

• Jason Thacker with an Explainer: Elections in Belarus, an internet blackout, and human rights

In a world where everything is tied to the internet in some capacity, a government should not have the power to institute a blackout at will in order to recentralize power and deny rights to its people. This power should also not be used in order to rig elections or jail opposition to retain ruling authority. While various details will likely still come out about the situation on the ground in Belarus, other authoritarian leaders throughout the world are watching to see how we respond to the abuses of power.

• Michael Natelli with How churches can serve those facing eviction during the pandemic

In Psalm 72:12-14, Solomon declares that the Lord “will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help. He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death. He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight.” As renters around the nation face both oppression and potential violence, the church has an opportunity to represent Jesus in ministering to their needs. The doctrine of the incarnation means that we serve a God who shows love through presence. And Christ’s earthly ministry was defined by drawing near to the poor and the suffering.

News From Capitol Hill

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) routinely violates the basic human rights of the Chinese people. Their decades of abuse are well documented, including systematically monitoring and destroying Christian churches.

Today, the CCP is detaining more than one million Uyghur Muslims in “re-education” camps, an atrocity seen in a viral video of these Chinese citizens being forced onto trains. In these concentration camps, communist party officials attempt to indoctrinate the Uyghur people detained into the ideological standard of Xi Jinping’s socialism.

Thankfully, this summer, Congress and the Trump administration stepped up the United States government’s response to the Chinese regime’s human rights atrocities. This increased effort includes applying Global Magnitsky Sanctions to top-ranking CCP officials for these abuses and religious freedom violations.

The ERLC, along with a broad coalition of human rights and religious freedom advocates, is advocating for the U.S. to counter China morally because of the CCP’s rising persecution of ethnic and religious minorities, including Christians.

If you're interested in learning more and getting involved, join the ERLC on August 21st at 1:00p - 2:00p ET for an important discussion. This webinar will cover the persecution of Uyghurs in China and ways pastors and Christians can get involved and help. Panelists include:

• Ambassador Samuel D. Brownback, U.S. Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom at the State Department

• Rushan Abbas, Founder and Executive Director of Campaign for Uyghurs

• Dr. Russell D. Moore, President of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission

• Travis Wussow, Vice President for Public Policy and General Counsel

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