Essay Sample about COVID-19 Lockdown

Freedom means the right to act, speak, or think as one wants without restraint. However, freedom always has to be restricted at some point for everyone’s good. Having freedom does not mean that one has the right to break the law or harm others because of their own freedom. There is not much difference for lockdowns either. Now, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some governments are calling for lockdowns. ‘COVID-19 lockdown’ is a widely known word for stay-at-home orders, curfews, or quarantines. Quite a lot of people oppose lockdowns and complain that it is against their rights to freedom. However, the government have the right to call for lockdowns during COVID-19 situations because it is for everybody’s safety, it will prevent a worse economic crisis in the future, and it will also increase the chances of research for cures for the disease or solutions to these situations.

During pandemic situations, lockdowns are called for everyone’s safety. When people are staying in their own houses, there is less chance of spreading or catching the disease. Also when people are on lockdown, it will be easier for the government to control the number of patients. For example, it’ll be much quicker and easier for the Ministry of Health and Welfare can track down people who tested positive and disinfect the streets or buildings that the person was in. Some people say that lockdowns don’t help reduce the cases, but this is not true. In 2021, Victoria, Australia’s second-largest state went under a second strict lockdown starting in July. By the end of the month, there was only an average of 6~13 cases a day in the whole state, and on August 3rd, Victoria had no case at all. However, ever since the lockdown ended on October 26th, the number of COVID-19 cases noticeably increased- that at the end of December, the number of new COVID 19 cases reached over 7000 a day. It is clear that lockdowns actually do stop the spread of the virus. Lockdowns are called to reduce the number of new cases and help people stay safe.

Lockdowns don’t only prevent the spread of the virus, but also prevent the future economic crisis. When COVID first appeared, people’s daily lives basically stopped. Schools were closed for almost about a month and shops or restaurants were closing since nobody came. Worse things will happen if the virus keeps spreading. According to BBC News, the IMF estimates that the global economy shrunk by 4.4% in 2020. They said the organization described the decline as the worst since the Great Depression. With more occurring cases of COVID, it will be hard to buy and sell products to other countries. South Korea depends heavily on exporting goods. According to Santander, trade represented 70.1% of South Korea’s GDP in 2020. Also, due to troubles importing goods from other countries, prices can also rise dramatically. Lockdowns give tension to people- it makes them realize how serious the situation is. Therefore, it will reduce the number of cases in the future and prevent further economic crises.

The government will also get more chances to research or find cures. It costs a lot to make vaccines or find or find cures to COVID-19. In fact, it cost about two trillion dollars just to invent the Moderna vaccine. However, if people can use the money that is being spent on patients or hospitals because of COVID-19 cases, there will be more opportunities for scientists and researchers. Lockdowns will lead to less number of patients, and that also means that government does not need to pay millions of dollars, actually way more, for people who are infected. Then all the money that the government has got can be used for research and studies about COVID-19, and to find ways to stop the pandemic.

It can be used to make vaccines for the omicron variant or cures for it. Lockdown will give more opportunities to figure out a way to change things back to normal.

Lockdowns benefit citizens, and the government has the right to call for them. It will protect people from the disease and stop any other economic difficulties from happening. There will also be much more opportunities for experts to learn and investigate about COVID-19. The COVID-19 pandemic has had impacted huge impact on people’s lives and also the entire society, and lots have suffered from it. Without lockdowns, society won’t be able to move toward the future.