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This time is different?—on the use of emergency measures during the corona pandemic

Author

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  • Christian Bjørnskov

    (University of Hamburg)

  • Stefan Voigt

    (University of Hamburg)

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has not only caused millions to die and even more to lose their jobs, it has also prompted more governments to simultaneously declare a state of emergency than ever before enabling us to compare their decisions more directly. States of emergency usually imply the extension of executive powers that diminishes the powers of other branches of government, as well as to the civil liberties of individuals. Here, we analyze the use of emergency provisions during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and find that it can be largely explained by drawing on political economy. It does, hence, not constitute an exception. We show that many governments have (mis-)used the pandemic as a pretext to curtail media freedom. We further show that executive decrees are considered as a substitute for states of emergency by many governments.

Suggested Citation

  • Christian Bjørnskov & Stefan Voigt, 2022. "This time is different?—on the use of emergency measures during the corona pandemic," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 54(1), pages 63-81, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:ejlwec:v:54:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1007_s10657-021-09706-5
    DOI: 10.1007/s10657-021-09706-5
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    7. Christian Bjørnskov & Stefan Voigt, 2022. "Terrorism and emergency constitutions in the Muslim world," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 59(3), pages 305-318, May.
    8. Hafner-Burton, Emilie M. & Helfer, Laurence R. & Fariss, Christopher J., 2011. "Emergency and Escape: Explaining Derogations from Human Rights Treaties," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 65(4), pages 673-707, October.
    9. Christian Bjørnskov & Martin Rode, 2020. "Regime types and regime change: A new dataset on democracy, coups, and political institutions," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 15(2), pages 531-551, April.
    10. Bjørnskov, Christian & Voigt, Stefan, 2018. "Why do governments call a state of emergency? On the determinants of using emergency constitutions," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 110-123.
    11. Christian Bjørnskov & Stefan Voigt, 2020. "When Does Terror Induce a State of Emergency? And What Are the Effects?," Journal of Conflict Resolution, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 64(4), pages 579-613, April.
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    Cited by:

    1. Egger, Clara & Magni-Berton, Raul & Roché, Sébastian & Aarts, Kees, 2020. "I do it my way. Understanding policy variation in pandemic response across Europe," OSF Preprints mscb8, Center for Open Science.
    2. Giorgio Brosio, Riccardo Pelosi, Roberto Zanola, 2022. "Short-term exit from pandemic restrictions: did European countries' speed converge?," European Journal of Comparative Economics, Cattaneo University (LIUC), vol. 19(2), pages 145-159, December.
    3. Bjørnskov, Christian & Freytag, Andreas & Gutmann, Jerg, 2022. "Coups and the dynamics of media freedom," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    COVID-19; Constitutional emergency provisions; State of emergency; Media freedom; Executive decrees;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • K40 - Law and Economics - - Legal Procedure, the Legal System, and Illegal Behavior - - - General
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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