6 The EconomistFebruary 20th 2021
For our latest coverage of the
virus please visit economist.com/
coronavirus or download the
Economist app.The world this week Politics
A winter storm that covered
three-quarters of America’s
Lower 48 with snow brought
havoc to southern states. A
federal emergency was de-
clared in Texas; temperatures
plummeted to -2oF (-19oC) in
Dallas. Millions of Texans were
left without power, as were
tens of thousands of people in
other states. Many blamed
antiquated energy grids for not
being able to cope with the
surge in demand for electricity.Donald Trump’simpeach-
ment trial for “incitement of
insurrection” ended quickly.
Fully 57 senators, including
seven Republicans, agreed that
he had whipped up the mob
that stormed Congress on
January 6th. But the vote fell
short of the two-thirds major-
ity required in the Senate to
convict the former president.Mario Draghi was sworn in as
Italy’sprime minister, having
secured the support of almost
all of the country’s main politi-
cal parties. The former head of
the European Central Bank
named a new cabinet in which
many of the key positions are
held by technocrats like him-
self. His task is to draw up a
plan of reform that can unlock
more than €200bn ($240bn) in
eucovid-recovery money.England dished out its first
£10,000 ($13,900) fines to
travellers who broke strict new
quarantinerules after return-
ing from a “red list” of 33 coun-
tries. Confusingly, the rules are
different in Scotland, which
now quarantines all interna-
tional arrivals. One flight that
was subject to Scottish rules
had only a handful of pas-
sengers, despite having 60
seats booked. The others may
have taken flights to Englandand then travelled overland to
Scotland, to avoid being
cooped up in costly hotels.Protests continued in
Myanmaragainst a military
coup. Many civil servants have
stopped work. Public services
and many financial trans-
actions are hamstrung. The
authorities have arrested
democrats, threatened truant
bureaucrats with prison and
tried to disperse crowds with
water cannons and rubber
bullets.A court in Indiaacquitted a
journalist, Priya Ramani, of
libel, after she accused a for-
mer government minister of
sexual harassment. The case is
seen as a milestone for India’s
#MeToo movement. Separately,
the police arrested Disha Ravi,
a green activist, after she post-
ed hints for environmental
protesters on how to gain
attention. They accused her of
“spreading disaffection”.A trial began in Hong Kongof
nine people for alleged
offences related to protests in- The accused include
well-known veterans of the
territory’s pro-democracy
movement, such as Martin Lee
and Jimmy Lai. Mr Lee and Mr
Lai, as well as five others,
pleaded not guilty to charges
involving illegal assembly.
Jake Sullivan, Joe Biden’s
national security adviser,
expressed “deep concerns”
about the reluctance of China
to release data related to the
outbreak of covid-19 in Wuhan.
He reiterated that China
should fully co-operate with an
investigation by the World
Health Organisation.Carlos Menem, Argentina’s
president from 1989 to 1999,
died aged 90. A Peronist by
political lineage, he adopted
some liberal economic poli-
cies, lowering trade barriers,
cutting subsidies and privatis-
ing state firms. But he failed to
protect ordinary Argentines’
livelihoods, and allowed rent-
seekers to flourish. With his
mutton-chop sideburns and
fast cars, Mr Menem was prob-ably the most glamorous resi-
dent of the Casa Rosada since
Evita Perón.The Biden administration said
that asylum-seekerscould
cross America’s southern
border to have their applica-
tions heard. Donald Trump had
insisted they wait in Mexico.Brazil’spresident, Jair Bolso-
naro, signed four decrees to
make it easier to pack heat.
Ordinary Brazilians will be
allowed to buy as many as six
guns (up from four) and carry
two at once.America vowed to punish the
perpetrators of a rocket attack
in Iraq’sKurdistan region that
killed a contractor with the
American-led military co-
alition and wounded several
others, including an American
soldier. A pro-Iranian group
claimed responsibility for the
attack.The uncalled for an additional
3,700 peacekeepers to be sent
to the Central African Repub-
licto bolster a force that is
already 15,000-strong. Rebels
are advancing on the country’s
main cities.Gunmen in Nigeriaabducted
42 students and staff from a
school, the latest such incident
in a country plagued by
kidnapping for ransom and
political hostage-taking. In
December 344 students were
taken from another school, but
later freed by security forces.Guinea said that three people
died after contracting Ebola, a
virus that is usually fatal if not
treated quickly. They are the
first cases in west Africa since
more than 11,000 people died
in an outbreak in the region
that raged from 2013 to 2016.Seif Sharif Hamad, the vice-
president of Zanzibar, died
after catching covid-19. Zan-
zibar is a semi-autonomous
part of Tanzania. John Magu-
fuli, Tanzania’s president,
insists his country is free of the
virus and that vaccinations
against it are dangerous and do
not work.Coronavirus briefsNew recorded infections in
Indiahave tumbled from
nearly 100,000 a day in Sep-
tember to under 10,000. In
Englanda study found that
infections have fallen by
two-thirds since early Janu-
ary. Californiareported fewer
than 5,000 new daily cases for
the first time since November.The world’s first “human
challenge” studyof covid-
got the go-ahead in Britain.
Volunteers aged 18-30 will be
exposed to the coronavirus to
establish how much of it is
needed to cause infection.The hours needed to shut and
disinfect New York’ssubway
system at night have been
reduced from four to two, a
sign, said an official, that the
city “is starting to return to
normalcy”.North Koreareportedly tried
to hack Pfizer’s computers to
find details of its vaccine.
Strange for a country that
officially claims not to have
had any cases of covid-19.Weekly confirmed deaths by area, ’To 6am GMT February 18th 2021Vaccination dosesSources: Johns Hopkins University CSSE;
Our World in Data; United NationsTotal Per 100
This week, ’000 ’000 people
Israel 802 6,759 78.
Seychelles 11 56 56.
UAE 833 5,199 52.
Britain 3,049 16,122 23.
United States 11,514 55,220 16.
Bahrain 50 253 14.
Chile 1,256 2,376 12.
Malta 13 54 12.
Serbia 165 817 12.
Denmark 66 422 7.3020100
2020 2021Western
Europe
USOtherLatin
America