The pandemic is being used to normalise government surveillance – Palestinians already know how dangerous this is

These tools can be used to suppress citizens, as well as monitor and harass human rights defenders, journalists, and political opponents, writes Mona Shtaya

Palestinians wearing face masks in Gaza City (EPA)

Many governments around the world have been trying in recent years to normalise the use of surveillance technologies, often in the face of public opposition.

However, the Covid-19 pandemic has enabled governments to push such tools under the pretext of public safety and public health.

The world after the pandemic will not remain the same. The normalistion of surveillance technologies has been accelerated by decades, exploiting citizens’ panic. Having convinced people that protecting public health trumps the right to privacy – even framing the latter as a dispensable luxury – it is exceedingly unlikely that governments will roll back legislation passed in the context of fighting a pandemic after it is over.