Abstract

This paper seeks to examine some contradictions that have made the international legal order’s procedure to collectively fight the COVID-19disease less effective. This alarming situation is worrisome because it is only a concerted effort that is needed to deal with the pandemic. These contradictions include the issue of patriotism, border problems, and vaccine equality contradiction. The ‘patriotism contradiction ’is that the international legal order weakens rather than strengthens state sovereignty when such state disengages from it. The ‘border contradiction’ is that obtaining national populations by precluding noncitizens, in the absence of putting in place the needed regulatory mechanisms to secure adherence to internal health measures, accelerates viral spread among citizens. The ‘equality contradiction’ is that while the pandemic poses an equal threat to all people, their impacts aggravate existing imbalances. The different contradictions surrounding the emergence and fight against the pandemic have pockmarked states against one another and this has largely weakened the collaborative mechanisms and action needed to overcome the global disease. These contradictions have rendered the international legal order vulnerable and impotent in the face of the most devastating global threat to human existence. The future of the world calls for collective concerted efforts in dealing with these contradictions which are by no means formidable threats to human rights and our fragile modern international law.

Keywords:     Pandemic, COVID-19, Health, Human Rights, International Law, Contradictions.