No, WHO's pandemic treaty will not remove the existing human rights protection laws

By: Ankita Kulkarni
August 11 2023

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Context

A viral video on Facebook claims that the World Health Organization's (WHO) pandemic treaty will remove existing human rights protection laws. The video in question is from Dr. Meryl Nass, an American doctor whose license is temporarily suspended following her public comments about the COVID-19 virus and vaccine.

In the video, Nass states, "The idea is to create a whole new set of laws and ignore the existing human rights laws and other laws under the pretext of pandemic preparedness and the biosecurity agenda." She adds, "Pandemic treaty and amendments to the existing International Health Regulations that will remove the human rights protections currently embedded in the IHRs, will enforce surveillance, censorship, get rid of freedom of speech, requires governments to censor and only push a single narrative."

The video is also viral on Twitter. Some posts on Facebook also claim the video shows Nass speaking at a WHO conference and she spoke representing the organization. The archive posts can be found here and here. 

In fact

In 2021, the WHO agreed to develop a global accord on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. It published a "Zero Draft" report to amend International Health Regulations (IHR), which issued guidelines on public responses to infectious diseases. The final draft is to be submitted by May 2024.

The 32-page document of the Zero Draft, publicly available, notes that the vision of the treaty aims to provide the highest standard of health for people following equity, human rights, and solidarity to achieve universal health coverage that will recognize the sovereign rights of countries. In this context, Logically Facts has previously debunked claims that the overpowers countries' domestic policies.

Article 4 in the draft details that IHR amendments will be implemented "with full respect for the dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons, and each Party shall protect and promote such freedoms."

Article 14 explains that countries will incorporate human rights protection laws during public health emergencies, and limitations will be aligned with international law. It states that the treaty shall ensure nondiscriminatory restrictions necessary to achieve the public health goal and least restrictive to protect people's health, provide health services and social protection programs, and consider the needs of people at high risk and persons in vulnerable situations. 

It also indicates that the amendments will endeavor to develop an independent advisory committee to advise the government on human rights protections during public health emergencies. It will also help build legal, policy frameworks and other measures necessary to protect human rights.

The draft makes no mention that it will ignore existing human rights laws to control the population. Narratives like these are shared in the context of the Great Reset conspiracy theory, which claims that organizations like the WHO are planning to arrest and enslave the population and drag people into a kind of totalitarian dystopia. 

Moreover, it was not a WHO conference, and Nass did not represent the organization. She was speaking at the International Covid Summit III held in Brussels, Belgium.

Logically Facts has also debunked similar claims shared by Dr. Meryl Nass, which can be read here and here.

The verdict

The Zero Draft of the pandemic treaty notes that it will amend IHR per existing international and national laws to promote people's freedom. Claims that it will take away human rights and enforce surveillance are conspiratorial. Therefore, we have marked the claim as false.