The disregard by some parts of the public and some business owners threatens to erase the achievements of the fight against the coronavirus. The political and media pressure prompted a hasty exit from the lockdown, but the rules must be remembered - even if they are arduous. And advice for the new Health Minister: Don't listen to charlatans who spread false information.
"Just as we were determined to reopen businesses, we are also determined to maintain public health and will not allow the laxity seen in some businesses across the city," Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai warned on Saturday after the news that some cafes, restaurants, malls, clubs, and beaches are completely ignoring all the Health Ministry's guidelines.
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Last Wednesday, for example, I saw many cafés in Tel Aviv that after opening acted completely against Health Ministry instructions. In one mall last week, one could walk in without a mask or having your temperature taken at the entrance. However, the laxity and irresponsibility demonstrated by some of the public and businesses are not indigenous to Tel Aviv, and can be seen across the country.
This disregard threatens to ruin and erase the impressive achievements Israel has made in minimizing the damage from the virus, and it could take us back not only to the severe restrictions for business but also – let's hope not – a spike in infections and deaths. Disconcerting signs could be seen in the past few days in 20 kindergartens, daycare centers and schools, most prominently the Hebrew Gymnasium in Jerusalem, and also some hospital wards.
Israel is one country that is exiting lockdown relatively quickly, towards a new coronavirus routine. But on the way back to normalcy it seems that the Health Ministry, other government ministries and the public forgot the difficult and tiring, yet necessary commitments for living with the virus, including maintaining the new rules in public spaces, such as masks, distancing and hygiene.
When a country takes drastic measures such as lockdown to fight a virus, it must be based on reliable messaging, on public trust, on a feeling of fairness and equality when it comes to the difficult measures the public takes on, on complete transparency, on leaders leading by example, and on significant economic and social aid. But these government commitments do not end when the restrictions are lifted, and the importance of messaging, transparency and public trust is even greater now.
Yet, it seems that even the Health Ministry is disregarding its own commitments. For example, with the hasty statement two weeks ago when Health Minister Yuli Edelstein let the public, and especially schoolchildren, forgo mask-wearing due to the extreme heat. By doing, without intending to, he made the public begin to believe that the pandemic in Israel is over and masks are no longer needed. The harsh and dangerous results can now be seen in almost every street, mall, and shop in Israel. It is concerning that the way in which the Health Ministry made the decision, and furthermore the way in which it was passed on to the public, were a mistake and severely harmed public messaging efforts.
The media, political and public pressure caused a hasty exit from the lockdown, and even now a handful of doctors, some currently of formerly in senior positions in the health system, are to the delight of the media spreading irresponsible, mistaken, dangerous and at times charlatan information that the coronavirus is "only a flu". If there is one piece of advice to be given to the new health minister, it is not to listen to them and to understand that fortunately for all of us, the heads of the Health Ministry and the prime minister did not listen to them until now and saved us from catastrophic damage the pandemic could have caused.
