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NewsAre we there yet? Covid Certificates
Are we there yet? Covid Certificates

Are we there yet? Covid Certificates

On July 1st, the European Union launched the EU Digital COVID Certificate to re-open travel within the EU. All member states participated, even those states with high vaccine hesitancy rates like Romania, who have just sold us 1 million surplus vaccines. All 27 member States that is, except Ireland. We are delaying our launch until July 19. Ryanair has called on the Government to explain why Ireland is “Paddy Last” to issue Digital COVID Certificates.

Any EU citizen can get a Certificate if they have either had Covid, had a negative PCR test or have been fully vaccinated. With the Certificate - which will appear as a QR code on your smartphone - holders will be free to travel around the EU without having to quarantine, isolate or restrict their movements. The fact that we are not included means we have to continue to put any holiday or travel plans on hold, but also means that we cannot properly welcome European tourists or business travellers to Ireland.

China has used a type of Digital Covid certificate since the beginning of the pandemic. A QR code on a Chinese citizen’s phone indicated if they were covid free and was scanned to allow access to the workplace, public transport and public buildings. This has allowed Chinese citizens a lot of freedoms to go about their business and avoid the more indiscriminate blanket lockdowns we experienced in Ireland.

On the other hand, the US has not implemented any type of national certificate or passport based on covid status, preferring to just vaccinate as many people as possible and allowing the hesitant the same freedoms as the vaccinated. However, US citizens travelling abroad are still being asked to prove they have been vaccinated, but it is potentially more difficult to safely and privately prove their vaccination status without an official Government Certificate.

The UK, has of course made up it’s own “world beating” system. The UK National Health Service is offering English citizens who still want to travel a PDF as proof of vaccination - in the event that the associated barcode may not be readable at the travel destination.

What do you think? Are Covid Certificates intrusive or freedom enhancing? Are they a sign of reduced civil liberties or efficient law and order? How will you use yours? Share your thoughts below:

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Are we there yet? Covid Certificates

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Someone
Someone from MN commented:

They will be soon scanning the people 

Eddie
Eddie from CN commented:

Absolutely disgraceful that we need covid passports to travel, this is totally unacceptable and a infringement on our civil liberties, where are our human rights people? 

Josep
Josep from D commented:

Excellent method of improving public health safety for persons who want to travel. Too many people have died from Covid-19 and we must limit it's transmission and increase in variants, by using methods like this to reopen society safely. 

dympna
dympna from G commented:

No Contest; The Covid Passport will enable Businesses to open safely . As more Passports are issued the numbers using the Businesses will increase, Think of it this way "If we are a crowd at a Bus Stop would we let a half empty Bus pass because it could not take all of us ??? " " 

Carina
Carina from C commented:

Following China... of course it’s liberty enhancement..... mmmmmm.... 

Josep
Josep from D commented:

To follow the Chinese authoritarian method is completely wrong. This is a virus which 99.8% of the population survive well. So there is no need to take experimental medical injections which are already causing enough damage. Furthermore, vaccinated people can still get Covid and spread it, so these vaccine passports are completely useless! This is just a measure to control the population and remove further freedoms and civil rights. Nothing else. 

Someone
Someone from LH commented:

We are being over cautious to an extent that the consequences are being absorbed by the people that matter ie the aviation industry and last to change and move out of the pandemic preferring to let NEPHID make Government decisions instead of letting them be advisors to the government and not allowing them take control. Grim and bad leadership for Ireland really 

Someone
Someone from C commented:

Common Sense. No Brainer . 

Martin
Martin from D commented:

Hi, Martin here, They are a and will be an essential piece of data in my opinion to protect ourselves and others worldwide from outbreaks of Covid, let's face it if you had no passport you would not be allowed enter another country so I would see it as an extension of a passport for the protection of all people worlwide. 

Timothy
Timothy from C commented:

They're freedom enhancing, of course! Anyone who states otherwise are just talking through their backsides! 

Eddie
Eddie from CN replied to Timothy:

Were you not born free, so why do you need permission to do what is your God giving right? 

Timothy
Timothy from C replied to Eddie:

Eddie, I'm entitled to my opinion as much as you are, so, I don't know what you're giving out for? You carry a passport in order to travel to foreign countries and if you want to continue to travel in these changed times then there's absolutely nothing wrong in carrying a Covid-19 Green Card to prove you've been fully vaccinated for your own personal safety and the safety of the local residents in the country you're visiting. It's only common decency and common sense in my opinion? 

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