The lawsuit was brought by Avaaz, an online activists network, and by People’s Vaccine Alliance. It is the result of over 40 international bodies´ work, including the Online Progressive Engagement Network (OPEN), Public Citizen, Frontline AIDS, Oxfam, SumOfUs and the European Citizens’ Initiative. All these bodies demand that no one profit from the pandemic, in a joint effort in which Avaaz and other organizations are aiding to raise awareness about access to Covid-19 vaccines and their role in guaranteeing a global solution to present health crisis.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, an expert committee is expected to debate at the WTO whether to temporarily release patents for Covid-19 vaccines, as requested by India, South Africa, the United States and dozens of developing countries.
It´s a proposal opposed by the European Union (EU) and Switzerland, regions of companies that manufacture a large part of vaccines on the market.
UK and Canada, on the other hand, already have vaccines for between three and four times their population, while Honduras, for example, has vaccinated 0.56% of its citizens.
Faced with this situation, 106 nations and several NGOs champion the release of patents to speed up coronavirus vaccine production, distribution and application.
pgh/Pll/oda / crc
