London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
Department of Sociology and Human Geography, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
Int J Health Policy Manag. 2021 Aug 1;10(8):511-515. doi: 10.34172/ijhpm.2020.124.
Do populist leaders contribute to the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)? While all governments have struggled to respond to the pandemic, it is now becoming clear that some political leaders have performed much better than others. Among the worst performing are those that have risen to power on populist agendas, such as in the United States, Brazil, Russia, India, and the United Kingdom. Populist leaders have tended to: blame "others" for the pandemic, such as immigrants and the Chinese government; deny evidence and show contempt for institutions that generate it; and portray themselves as the voice of the common people against an out-of-touch 'elite.' In our short commentary, focusing on those countries with the most cases, we find that populist leaders appear to be undermining an effective response to COVID-19. Perversely, they may also gain politically from doing so, as historically populist leaders benefit from suffering and ill health. Clearly more research is needed on the curious correlation of populism and public health. Notwithstanding gaps in the evidence, health professionals have a duty to speak out against these practices to prevent avoidable loss of life.
民粹主义领导人是否推动了 2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）的传播？虽然各国政府都在努力应对这一疫情，但现在显然有些政治领导人的表现要好于其他领导人。表现最差的领导人中，有一些是凭借民粹主义议程上台的，例如在美国、巴西、俄罗斯、印度和英国。民粹主义领导人往往会：将疫情归咎于“他人”，例如移民和中国政府；否认证据，并对产生证据的机构表示蔑视；将自己描绘成代表普通民众反对脱离实际的“精英”的声音。在我们的简短评论中，我们重点关注病例最多的国家，发现民粹主义领导人似乎正在破坏对 COVID-19 的有效应对。奇怪的是，他们这样做可能也会在政治上受益，因为历史上民粹主义领导人从苦难和健康不佳中受益。显然，需要对民粹主义和公共卫生之间的这种奇特关联进行更多的研究。尽管证据存在差距，但卫生专业人员有责任对此类做法提出反对意见，以防止不必要的生命损失。
