WHO has not advised governments to cancel upcoming elections due to bird flu outbreaks

Context

Social media posts sharing a screenshot of an article by The People's Voice about bird flu in humans are circulating online (archived here, here, and here). The article's headline reads, "WHO Warns Bird Flu Outbreak Means Govt's Must' Cancel Upcoming Elections.'"

However, The People's Voice, previously known as NewsPunch and YourNewsWire, is a website notorious for publishing fake claims and conspiracy theories, and the claims made in the article are false.

In fact

On June 6, the site published an article falsely asserting that the World Health Organization (WHO) predicts bird flu is set out to become the next pandemic and will be deadlier than COVID-19.

The People's Voice references a World Health Organization report. On June 5, the WHO reported the first laboratory-confirmed case of the A(H5N2) bird flu subtype in a human and the first avian H5 virus infection in a person reported in Mexico.

A 59-year-old patient in Mexico who had been bedridden for three weeks due to chronic health issues developed a fever, shortness of breath, and diarrhea on April 17. The patient was hospitalized on April 24 and passed away the same day. Posthumous testing of a respiratory sample confirmed the presence of the influenza subtype A(H5N2). According to the WHO, no additional human cases were identified during the epidemiological investigation.

While the WHO advises travelers to avoid farms and follow food safety guidelines, they do not recommend special screening at entry points or restrictions on influenza viruses at the human-animal interface. Additionally, the WHO does not provide any recommendations regarding elections.

A spokesperson for the WHO refuted the claim, telling Logically Facts, “WHO has not ordered governments to postpone and cancel elections, and cannot.” According to the WHO Constitution, the organization can make recommendations and offer guidance to member states, but it does not have the power to enforce or dictate policies on sovereign nations.

Furthermore, the content of The People's Voice article has little connection to the headline, further undermining its credibility. While the headline falsely attributes a claim to the WHO, the article primarily discusses concerns raised by online users about potential bird flu vaccines, with no further mention of the alleged WHO advice to governments regarding elections. 

Avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu, is an infectious disease that primarily affects birds. While it typically does not infect humans, there have been occasional cases of human infection. This can occur when the virus enters a person's eyes, nose, or mouth or is inhaled. The transmission of bird flu viruses from an infected person to a close contact is extremely rare. The WHO has stated that the current likelihood of sustained human-to-human spread is low.

Currently, there are no vaccines against bird flu for humans, though candidate vaccines to prevent A(H5) infection in humans have been developed for pandemic preparedness purposes.

The verdict

The World Health Organization has not advised governments to cancel upcoming elections over concerns of bird flu, and the claims originate from a website known for publishing fake news articles. Instead, the WHO has advocated for safety and hygiene precautions for those traveling to countries with known bird flu outbreaks. Therefore, we have marked this claim as false.

(Update: This fact-check was updated on June 18, 2024, to add comment from the WHO.)