The coronavirus is no laughing matter.
Even April Fool’s Day – the one day where everyone is allowed to be an asshole – has been “cancelled” because no one is in the mood to laugh at the moment.
It’s so bad that even Google, who once created a tulip you can talk to called Google Tulip as an April Fool’s Day prank, has cancelled all prank plans this year.
And some countries are taking this so seriously that if you dare to make a joke on this cursed day, you could end up in serious trouble.
Some Countries Are Threatening Jail Time for April Fool’s Jokes About COVID-19
Unlike what many comedians would like you to think, there appear to be some things you really can’t joke about.
Many countries are warning its citizens about playing pranks or making jokes about the coronavirus, threatening to jail them if they do.
The worry, of course, is the spreading of coronavirus-related misinformation.
On Tuesday (31 March) Thai officials said that April Fool’s Day jokes about the virus could be punished under a law carrying a sentence of up to five years in prison.
“DON’T lie, spread false info about Covid-19 situation, infections tomorrow”, the government tweeted.
DON’T lie, spread false info about Covid-19 situation, infections tomorrow, April Fool's Day #COVID19 #Thailandnews https://t.co/7aVJhz4MRh
— TheNationThailand (@nationnews) March 31, 2020
Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen warned people on Facebook not to prank each other about the virus, adding that anyone spreading misinformation could face up to three years in jail and/or a fine of up to NT$3 million (S$141,000).
Damn, these officials aren’t messing around.
The cybersecurity unit for Maharashtra, India, also threatened legal action against anyone spreading fake news on April Fools’ Day, with the Home Minister Anil Deshmukh tweeting “the state govt won’t allow anyone to spread rumors/panic on #Corona.”
Tomorrow's April 1st. The annual tradition making an 'April Fool' of people has already begun on WhatsApp & social media. The state govt won't allow anyone to spread rumours/panic on #Corona. I've instructed @MahaCyber1 to act swiftly & strongly such miscreants.#NoCoronaRumour
— ANIL DESHMUKH (@AnilDeshmukhNCP) March 31, 2020
And if you think this is all talk, think again. The police in Mumbai have already registered a case against an unnamed resident who falsely claimed on WhatsApp that the military had been deployed in the city.
I mean if you’re going to play a prank that could land you in jail at least make it funny.
Germany’s health ministry also warned against such activity under the heading “Corona is no joke,” Reuters reported.
Infections rapidly increasing
If you check the number of global infections every day, you’d have noticed something startling in the last week.
The number of coronavirus cases has been increasing by 100,000 at least every two days.
On March 25, we had 471,000 cases, and now we have 858,669 just a week later.
While 1 out of 5 has recovered, 42,151 people have died from the disease so far.
Scientists have predicted that between 100,000 and 240,000 Americans could die in spite of the social distancing measures.
Yes, things are not great at the moment.
Taking into account the 47 new cases reported yesterday (31 March), Singapore has a total of 926 Covid-19 infections.
22 are in the ICU and 240 have been discharged. 3 have died from complications caused by the disease.
The number of locally-transmitted cases has been rising, which is why the Health Minister stressed the importance of taking safe distancing measures seriously.
We all need to do our part to curb the spread of this virus and flatten the curve.
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Stay at home at all times if you can. And if you must go out, keep a distance of at least one metre from others, especially in queues and eateries.
And, as always, see a doctor if you’re not feeling well before you unknowingly spread the disease to those around you.
