Troll diplomacy 😡

Beware of the wolves that would feed off of our discontent [View this email in your browser]( June 30, 2021 [Mail & Guardian]( [Mail & Guardian]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [YouTube]( Hi there, Today was a morning presumably like any other for the Economic Freedom Fighters’ social media handler. Get out of bed, warm up with a cup of coffee, nibble on some toast, and then tweet an image featuring big, bold letters rejecting lockdown “UNTIL THERE’S A CLEAR VACCINATION PLAN!” The other Crimson Tide, if you weren’t aware, are not huge fans of many of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s policies. Which, of course, is hardly a trait unique to them. Any unanimity we experienced in the political sphere during Covid-19’s arrival was quickly replaced by the petty sniping that has come to define South Africa’s civic discourse over the past decade. But the EFF have often taken their disagreements a step further, interspersing their own theories with others doing the rounds on social media, supported loosely by cherry-picked and often dangerous erroneous scientific research. On Friday, the attitude turned into a mass demonstration outside the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (Sahpra). EFF leader Julius Malema is demanding that the regulatory authority approve the Chinese CoronaVac and Russian Sputnik V vaccines, failing which the EFF’s so-called ground forces “will do a sleep-in at the house” of the regulator’s chief executive, Boitumelo Semete-Makokotlela. To get its way, the EFF has also resorted to sending threatening WhatsApp messages to female staff at Sahpra. Aggressive, gendered attacks are not a novel tactic. This is South Africa after all. Public officials in the US — especially women — were stalked and threatened by populist or militia groups in response to masking directives and stay-at-home orders. Many of these health officials have since left their posts in fear for their safety. In October 2020, state and federal officials in the US brought charges of terrorism, conspiracy and weapons charges against 13 men in Michigan. At least six of them allegedly [concocted detailed plans to kidnap Governor Gretchen Whitmer]( a Democrat who had become a focal point of anti-government views and anger over coronavirus control measures. Semete-Makokotlela, who has the final say on the authorisation of health products, including vaccines, says it’s “unfortunate when institutions like ourselves, who play a critical role in ensuring public safety, are being attacked like this”. Sahpra can now begin evaluating the Chinese-developed Sinopharm vaccine after receiving documents from the local applicant for an emergency use authorisation last week. This is the third Covid-19 vaccine currently being reviewed. Sahpra, which is a separate and independent entity from the department of health, works in the public service, and is governed by national legislation. It works with other international regulators worldwide, as well as the World Health Organisation, in assessing the quality, safety and efficacy of all health products for which approval is sought. It is responsible for monitoring, evaluating, investigating, inspecting and registering all health products, not only Covid-19 vaccines. The EFF’s “march to save lives” demanded that people congregate in their numbers to voice their protests against a non-partisan organisation, very much in the shade of American-style anti-vax marches. The march was a success in that it did provide a platform for EFF leaders, who have not had much to be contrary about over the past 16 months, with an opportunity to get dressed and make noise. It did manage to make it onto the Sputnik V vaccine’s social media radar [with this tweet](. Since the account’s inception in August 2020, Western governments and scientists have accused the Kremlin of attempting to discredit Western-developed vaccines in favour of the Russian alternative, Sputnik V. To this end, the verified [Sputnik V Twitter account]( has engaged in information manipulation and the spread of propaganda [according to research by Eto Buziashvili and Jean Le Roux]( of the [Digital Forensic Research Lab](. The account targets Western leaders and critics, as well as amplifying negative criticism of Western vaccines, while promoting Sputnik V’s efficacy. In Malema’s zero-sum game, there can be no room for intermediary measures either. This week, after Ramaphosa took us back to level four, the EFF called on the population to disobey the law and violate lockdown regulations. EFF spokesperson Vuyani Pambo said: “We call for the defiance and rejection of Ramaphosa’s lockdowns and restrictions because they are not accompanied by a comprehensive and believable plan to end the devastating impact of the coronavirus”. The truth is that Ramaphosa and his government would be hard-pressed to find many people that actually are enamoured with their performance of late. Holding power to account is our democratic right and healthy avenues of criticism are necessary for any nation to flourish. However, it is beholden on us to be aware of the wolves that would feed off of our discontent, discolouring the narrative to advance their own agenda. Pay the trolls’ toll at your own peril. Yours in solidarity, Kiri Rupiah & Luke Feltham [Subscribe now]( Enjoy The Ampersand? Share it with your friends [Share]( [Share]( [Tweet]( [Tweet]( [Forward]( [Forward]( [Share]( [Share]( Copyright © 2021 Mail & Guardian Media LTD, All rights reserved. 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