As legal proceedings over coronavirus begin, history tells us that boosting solidarity is more helpful than pointing the finger
Earlier this month, proceedings opened in Austria in a civil suit brought against the authorities by the widow and son of a man who died of Covid-19 after staying in Ischgl, the ski resort widely regarded as having hosted a super-spreader event early in the pandemic. The week before, former French health minister Agnès Buzyn was ordered by a court to answer, essentially, for the government’s lack of anticipation of the pandemic.
In the UK, meanwhile, the government has promised a public inquiry into the handling of the crisis. It’s due to start next spring. Those pushing for it to begin sooner argue that the lessons learned could still save lives, but apportioning blame is another function of a public inquiry. The finger of blame has hovered over this pandemic since the beginning, and now it is tapping on actual shoulders.
