The Chinese government is not the only one to order vaccinations for certain key employees or deny access to those who have not been vaccinated. French President Emmanuel Macron has ordered all health workers to be vaccinated, and if they refuse, they risk losing their jobs. Evidence will be needed in early August that patients have received two doses of COVID to enter hospitals, restaurants and some modes of transport in France.
Similarly, the Australian Government has stated that all those working in old people’s homes must receive at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine by mid-September.
Such measures have been criticized in China, as some people are concerned that the restrictions are a harbinger of compulsory vaccination across the country.
In a letter to China News Weekly, Shen Kui, director of the Peking University Research Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, questioned the legitimacy of measures he de facto considered mandatory vaccination.
“Unvaccinated people will face various obstacles in their lives and work. The only way to avoid these obstacles is to get vaccinated. If it is not a mandatory vaccination, what can it be? “Shen asks.
“Before compulsory vaccination against COVID-19 becomes a legal requirement, there are no legal grounds for imposing such restrictions,” he added.