Is it ethical to vaccinate children, who are part of a non-risk group, in order to, supposedly, create herd immunity and eradicate the virus?

Ana Mafalda Cabral

For the past three years the Portuguese people, as the majority of the world, have been trying to survive through a pandemic. Each individual fought for their health and stability while the government kept throwing controversial debates to exacerbate the situation even more. The latest one, one that puts part of the population at risk, is the vaccination of children.

For the ponderation of the decision of vaccinating their children, parents should consider two aspects. Firstly, any vaccine has the purpose of protecting the person who takes it from the effects of a disease, which in this case doesn’t apply, since the possibility of healthy minors being seriously affected by Covid-19 is extremely low. Secondly, studies suggest that the vaccine can cause prejudicial effects in shorter (myocarditis) and longer-terms (unknown).
With this in mind, is it ethical to vaccinate children, who are part of a non-risk group, in order to, supposedly, create herd immunity and eradicate the virus?

My answer is NO. It is never ethical to use minors in benefit of society. In this case specifically children are being vaccinated in order to protect others, putting their health at risk.
Instead of taking the necessary time to evaluate this matter, the Portuguese government decided to publish some “scientific” papers in which the specialists said that the vaccine would be beneficial for each minor, reducing the transmission of the virus between children, which normally does not present any symptoms. It is a childish move.
Since the vaccination is not imposed, this should not represent an issue. This is what I first thought. However, once I started researching and looking around, I came to the conclusion that even thought the vaccination is not mandatory it imposes some crucial changes in our lives.

As I write this opinion piece, the Portuguese law says that people who have received the third dose of the vaccine do not need to quarantine after contacting with a positive case, while people who are not completely vaccinated (only have two doses) or people who have the recovery certificate must isolate for ten days.
This is relevant because although vaccination is not compulsory, the government continues to give essential advantages to the individuals who decide to take it.

During the past month the idea of a necessary certificate to frequent schools has been around. It is not official, but is still ridiculous that a democratic government such as the Portuguese can even think about this.
These situations force parents to make hurried decisions about vaccination of their children that can affect the minor’s heath forever. It is imperative that us, as a society, keep expressing our opinion against the government moves, in order to protect the most fragile, our children.