False: The COVID-19 pandemic was manufactured by authoritarian elites to kill people.

Context

A YouTube video released on March 18, 2023 claims the COVID-19 pandemic was planned, calling it "The Great Democide of the 2020s." The four-minute clip, which has received over 16 thousand views on YouTube, insinuates the pandemic planning "occurred in plain sight" as a calculated plan by a group of "philanthropists, modelers, testers, NGOs, scientists, and politicians" to kill people. The video asserts that "To imply otherwise is to give them the out they are seeking."

The video, titled "Mistakes Were NOT Made: An Anthem for Justice," features Dr. Tess Lawrie, a physician known to promote unscientific views on COVID-19 treatments. In 2021, Lawrie published a non-peer-reviewed paper that wrongly claimed the unauthorized drug ivermectin could reduce the risk of COVID-19. 

 Lawrie compares the COVID-19 pandemic to several evidenced genocides, including the Armenian genocide and the Holocaust. 

The video's claims are unsubstantiated, and there is no evidence the COVID-19 pandemic was planned. The World Health Organization's (WHO) latest report on the pandemic's origins has not found any conclusive evidence. Neither the WHO nor any reliable organization has ever introduced or acknowledged the idea that the pandemic was manufactured.

In Fact

On March 12, 2023, the WHO was notified of a report with new data and sequences from environmental samples collected at the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan, China. The report found the samples contained the DNA of raccoon dogs, which were traded in the market and are known to be susceptible to the virus that causes COVID-19.

In its latest statement, the WHO has stated the results "provide potential leads" to the virus's origins; however, it still doesn't provide "conclusive evidence." The Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens "strongly recommends" China continue investigating the origins, including sources of animals and animal products from the Huanan market before its closure. 

Lawrie's claims that the pandemic was a planned genocide are unsubstantiated. There is no evidence the COVID-19 pandemic was a genocide, and the virus impacted people of different races, religions, and nationalities. The video's narrative ties into the Great Reset conspiracy - the false belief that an authoritarian group of elites, including The World Economic Forum, planned the pandemic and used it as an opportunity to launch radical policies like vaccines and lockdowns. Since it was published, Logically has found the clip widely circulating in several COVID skeptic Telegram channels. 

Logically has previously debunked several claims linked to the conspiracy. The BBC found that such narratives are not novel, and beliefs in "the emergence of a totalitarian world government" have been disseminated "since the 1960s." 

Verdict

There has never been any evidence to conclude the COVID-19 pandemic was manufactured. The World Health Organization continues investigating the pandemic's origins. Therefore, we have rated this claim as false. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a lot of potentially dangerous misinformation. For reliable advice on COVID-19, including symptoms, prevention, and available treatment, please refer to the World Health Organization or your national healthcare authority.