Attempts to Discredit Communication from South African Presidency on Pandemic Agreement Negotiations, Creates Confusion At a Key Juncture

Newsletter Edition #95 [Treaty Talks]

Hi,

One of the biggest challenges of our times is reconciling with a post-truth world - where facts exist, but do not matter.

Global Health Geneva is not insulated from the wider trends that affect much of the world. The negotiations at WHO are also witnessing a moment where the reality has been splintered.

For this story, we fact-checked, have gone beyond official statements and have tried to connect the dots. What emerges is a rather complicated picture. Details matter.

May I also emphasize a rather obvious fact - going beyond official statements is fundamental to journalism. If reporters were only writing based on OfficialSpeak, it would be an inaccurate depiction of lived reality.

Read our edition today, which reveals mind-bending politics in these negotiations.

It is blasé to casually discredit journalism as fake news these days. My appeal to readers is do not do it unless you have done your own due diligence. The responsibility lies as much with readers as with journalists.

Only last week, a developed country negotiator gently accused us of misinformation in relation to a story we published recently. As per standard practice, we are happy to publish responses to the story. But none came.

This week, after publishing this story, I received numerous messages dismissing the veracity of this letter from the South African Presidency. For the record, we are committed to, and responsible with, the way we treat and process information. We take this seriously.

If facts do not suit a certain narrative, they cannot simply be dismissed.

It has been enlightening to witness how facts can be twisted, and how even incorrect information can be put to use to serve a narrative. This shows the stakes are high.

We are tracking not only the process, but also the politics in these negotiations. (We will update this story to reflect any feedback we receive subsequently.)

We remain committed to report diligently as we have been: four years, 400+ stories averaging 5,000 words a week.

Journalism helps to cut through motivated misinformation and doctored political narratives.

Support public interest global health journalism, become a paying subscriber. Tracking global health policy-making in Geneva is tough and expensive. Help us raise important questions, and in keeping an ear to the ground. Readers paying for our work makes this possible.

Our gratitude to our subscribers who help us stay in the game!

Watch out for our analysis on the substantive issues in these negotiations.

Best,

Priti

Feel free to write to us: patnaik.reporting@gmail.com. Follow us on X: @filesgeneva

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Illustration Credit: Amy Clarke, Chembe Collaborative

I. The Files In Brief:

Attempts to Discredit Communication from South African Presidency on Pandemic Agreement Negotiations, Creates Confusion At a Key Juncture

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Did they or didn’t they?

This has been one of the many questions plaguing beleaguered negotiators in Geneva negotiating a Pandemic Agreement at WHO this week, when uncertainty around a Presidential communication from South Africa caused complications exacerbating already difficult circumstances. Conflicting signals from the government of South Africa on the overall position of the Africa Group, a key player in these negotiations, has led to confusion at a critical time in these discussions.

In this story, we try to unpack what has transpired over the last 48 hours, even as uncertainty continues at the time of publishing this edition.

The South African case is illustrative of the pressures faced by governments from different quarters and interest groups as countries negotiate a Pandemic Agreement under difficult circumstances. South Africa heads into election mode next week on May 29th, when the World Health Assembly considers a resolution on the Pandemic Agreement.

On May 21, Geneva Health Files published a letter from the South African Presidency dated May 20, 2024 that laid out the markers for the Africa Group in the Pandemic Agreement negotiations.

After we published it, we received some messages alleging that this letter was fake. As per usual process, we had verified our information with our trusted sources before publishing the letter that comes in at a sensitive stage of the negotiations scheduled for conclusion by May 24^th.

We confirmed the veracity of the letter yet again with multiple sources associated with the process. And we stand by our decision to publish the letter that sources say is genuine. There has been no denial communicated to us that this letter was not sent by the Presidency. Contrary to it, multiple sources attest to the authenticity of the letter.

We are still awaiting an official clarification from South African authorities after more than 24 hours of waiting to receive a response from them. We will update this story if we indeed receive a response.