SLOBODIAN: German health officials, politicians enforced COVID mandates despite knowing significant harm

Eventually, truth will out.Like in Germany, where a firestorm has erupted over just-released confidential public health agency files revealing officials knew COVID-19 mandatory masks, lockdowns and other tough measures were either useless or would inflict “more harm than good” on the public.But mandates were enforced anyway according to the documents, with politicians ignoring warnings from experts and then embellishing the severity of the pandemic situation to justify enforcing compliance — sometimes brutally.Germany’s public health agency, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), was forced to release confidential files after losing a two-year legal battle with Multipolar Media, a small digital outlet whose findings are often inaccurately dismissed as conspiracy theories.Although heavily redacted, the 2,500 pages offer enough evidence to prove citizens were willfully misled and suffered needlessly — particularly children and youth.Now German officials, including even far-left politicians, are demanding a thorough investigation and that the redacted one-third of the documents be made public. What sinister damning secrets could about 1,000 blacked out passages hold?Minutes from the RKI’s crisis unit meetings held between February 2020 and April 2021 show concerns were voiced that shutting down German society could lead to serious consequences, including child mortality.In December 2020, RKI knew lockdowns could “do more harm than good.” This was based on lockdowns in Africa that caused “an expected rise in child mortality” and other consequences “more severe than the virus itself.”RKI officials also disagreed on enforcing FFP2 face masks. Opponents argued data offered “no evidence” to support the necessity of the extreme mandate outside of healthcare facilities.“Active communication would make sense in order to make clear why the RKI does not recommend this measure,” read a minute regarding mask regulations, reported Remix News.Minutes revealed RKI officials said they would alert the public to their non-support of the masks “but the agency never did so despite mass protests against mandatory masks and other harsh measures.”A minute from January 2021 revealed concerns were raised about the AstraZeneca vaccine being “not as perfect” as other vaccines and that discussion was needed on its use.And politicians weren’t above devising a ruse to deceive German citizens.“The documents have revealed that German politicians dramatized the situation, contrary to the opinions of experts. This was done presumably in order to implement coercive measures and restrict basic rights,” said Remix.Media reports say the revelations in the documents have sent shockwaves throughout Germany.The left-wing Green Party of Germany wants a “comprehensive review” of COVID-19 policy.The Alternative for Germany party demanded a commission investigation.“Everything should be put on the table,” Armin Laschet, former leader of the Christian Democratic Union, told public service television broadcaster ZDF.Laschet, who pushed a moderate pandemic approach, said Germany’s media failed to hold authorities accountable.“The fact that these documents were released based on a suit brought by a website that is said to spread conspiracy theories makes clear that no mainstream outlet tried to get hold of them,” he told the Telegraph.Germans are in an uproar, evidenced by Twitter ("X") posts reported by Remix.“The Bavarian state government tortured children with masks until spring 2022 — even in physical education classes. Not because there was scientific evidence for it, but because (Barvarian State Premier) Markus Söder liked the role of coronavirus hardliner,” posted one user.“It’s good that the RKI protocols are included in the broader discussion! But there can be no such thing as cheap forgiveness. With the coronavirus, 2/3 of Germans became massively aggressive against 1/3. The handcuffs must click on the main criminals,” wrote another who posted a video of police brutalizing anti-COVID mandate protesters. .Meanwhile, Health Minister Karl Lauterbach, with the German Social Democratic Party, who was in charge during much of the pandemic opposed a commission.“Enlightenment is good, but we must not allow conspiracy theories to arise on social media through the interference of foreign governments,” he wrote on Twitter ("X").Remix noted that when left-wing politicians “are cornered” they cry foreign interference linked to Russia.So, were German health officials and politicians the only ones who had been alerted to concerns? Hardly.“Our governments all knew that lockdowns and the use of Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions (NPIs)) had been studied for decades and did far more harm than good,” said Lt. Dave Redman (ret’d).“I told them that from April 2020 to March 2021, then gave up and wrote a position paper that the elected officials and MoH (ministry of health) need to be held criminally accountable.”Canada’s Deadly Response to COVID-19 was published by the Frontier Centre for Public Policy in July 2021.Then last November, Redman’s tireless warnings about Canada’s “incoherent” and chaotic response to COVID-19 were validated by the Public Health Emergencies Governance Review Panel headed by former Reform party leader Preston Manning.German health officials and politicians will have their feet held to the fire over the revelations that they recklessly inflicted deep and perhaps irreparable harm on citizens.It’s not a secret anymore.Does that make anyone else who may be sitting on dark secrets behind knowingly enforcing harmful, harsh COVID-19 measures nervous?Like one German wisely opined “there can be no such thing as cheap forgiveness.”Eventually, the truth will be revealed.