2021/01/01 by Syna Ouattara, Nikolas Århem · 1 citation
Medicine · Social Sciences · #Global Security and Public Health #Misinformation and Its Impacts #Viral Infections and Outbreaks Research
paper · pdf · doi:10.4000/etudesafricaines.33151
crossref issued 2021/01/01 · crossref published 2021/01/01 · crossref published-print 2021/01/01 · openalex publication_date 2021/01/01 · crossref created 2021/03/12 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · crossref deposited 2026/04/17 · crossref indexed 2026/07/29 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
The Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa claimed more than 11,000 lives between 2013-2016. The source is believed to have been a single infection of a small boy, caused by contact with a bat. A huge international effort was mobilized to stem the spread of the disease. However, these efforts were hampered by a strong and sometimes violent resistance against the relief workers. This article focuses on the resistance in Guinea, arguing that the resistance was fueled by conspiracy theories, often originating in urban centers and communicated via social media. The conspiracy theories then merged with local sorcery beliefs, producing narratives in which Ebola relief workers and local politicians were presented as implicated in a sinister occult plot.