CHARLES

GOMEZ &
COMPANY
BARRISTERS AT LAW

Your Ref.
CAG/ccg/hb1CC 11 5S5
Our Ref.
1 7 th September 202 1

Dr Helen Carter
Director of’ Public Health
S,t Bernard’s Hospital
Gibraltar

Dear Dr. Carter

RE: Vaccination Progranirne for 12 - 15-Vear-Olds

We are instructed by “Freedom Gibraltar’’, a citizens group with over 200 membe
rs, who are
concerned as to certain policies, laws and mandates that have been implemented.
or that are
being considered. under Public Health advice.

Our clients have no objection in principle to any medical procedLire. including

the application
of’ vaccines.

However, as thinking citizens in a long—established democracy where questio

ning of official
decisions has been the norm, they have developed a legitimate expectation that
the questions
posed b citizens will be responded to in a comprehensive and respectful manne
r by otficials
whose salaries are funded by taxpayers. including our clients.

In the schedule to this letter. we describe what we consider to he unacceptable

failures on the
part ofoftcials in Gibraltar in engaging with citizens in a manner which serves
only to deprive
the authorities of credibility in respect of their responses to the pandemic.

At this time, when the public health emergency threatens so many areas of previo
usly normal
human activity (including reasonable access to health services and the economy).
such lack of
credibility is detrimental to the public interest and bound to raise deep suspici
ons, as we hope
you will agree.
Naturally, the questioning of vaccination of children has taken centre stage and
is causing great
anxiety and dismay to many people in Gibraltar and elsewhere and that is why
we would ask
you to address this matter in priority to others which we raise below.

Vaccination of Children

On the 13th of September 2021, the Government of Gibraltar announced that

both the GHA’s
Medical Director, Dr. Krishna Rawal, and yourself in your capacity as
Director fEuMc
Health ha\e athised in favour of the iollout of \acclnatlon toi 12—15 yeai olds Lane
in Gfta
1 +350 20074998 20073316
1 F +350 20073074
Email infogomezco.gI
wwlawequitygibraltarCOm
 CHARLES
GOMEL&
“On the advice of the GHA ‘s Medical Director and Director ofPublic Health, the i’viinisteicD M PANY
Health has today announced the roll-out of CO VID-19 vaccinations to children aged betwTMh1 STE RS AT LAW

12 and 15 in Gibraltar. “

As you know, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), who are an
independent expert advisory committee in the United Kingdom, released a statement on the
3rd
of September declaring that the committee does not support the use of Covid-19 vaccines
for 12—15-year-olds at this time due to lack of “longer-term” data, “considerable uncertainty
regarding the magnitude of potential harms” to the child and limited benefit to “otherwise
healthy 12 to 15-year-old children”:
“Overall, the committee is of the opinion that the benefits from vaccination are marginally
greater than the potential known harms (tables 1 to 4) but acknowledges that there is
considerable uncertainty regarding the magnitude of the potential harms. The mnaiiii of
benefit, based primarily on a health perspective, is considered too small to support advice on
a universal program,ne of vaccination of otherwise healthy 12 to 1 5—year—old c/i i/dren at this
time. As longer—term data on potential adverse reactions accrue, greater certain/v may al/ow
for a reconsideration oft/ic benefits and harms. Such data may not be available for several
months. “2

Myocarditis
Troubling reports of “rare” cases of otherwise healthy children developing myocarditis,
particularly young males, are being seen across the world following the first and second doses
of the Pfizer vaccine, with risk of developing myocarditis increasing further after the second
dose (see table in JCVI statement3). Although this is considered to be a “rare” adverse event,
we think that this potential risk must be explained in detail to the public, not least in pursuant
of the principle that no medical procedure should be applied without informed consent.
Informed Consent
It is, as you know, a fundamental principle of medical law and ethics that, before treating a
competent patient, a medical professional should get his or her consents.
It has been said that long gone are the days when a “trust me, I’m a doctor” approach is
sufficient.
The “principle of autonomy” involves complex issues at the centre of which is the strict
requirement that the patient should have full, frank, fair and candid information on all relevant
matters.

The absence of such information can, in certain circumstances, render a given medical
treatment illegal.

olcis-6422021-7223
2

2
 CHARLES
GOMEL&
Needless to say, the deliberate withholding of information is in all the circumstariC M PA NY
BAR RI STE RB AT LAW
particularly reprehensible.
It stands to reason that, in connection with the proposed vaccination of children, clear
information must be given to both children and parents, listing all known adverse events and
quantifying the risks of the Pfizer vaccination in percentage terms in the context of the fact that
there have been no publicly announced adverse events / deaths of children in Gibraltar from
Covid-19 infection and that, in any event, vaccination does not prevent infection or
transmission and that young people present only mild or no symptoms.
We respectfully suggest that anything falling short of this basic information would be a
dereliction of the duty to provide informed consent.
Questions

The Freedom Gibraltar Group would like to receive your response to the following questions
in the interests of the public, and to ensure informed consent is attained by all parents
considering allowing their children to be vaccinated, as a matter of great urgency.

This matter could not be more urgent.

1. Are you personally fully employed by the Government of Gibraltar / GHA? Or do you
have any remaining professional or other relationship with the United Kingdom
government or the health authorities of that country or any other conflicting interests
which you think must be disclosed?

2. Please confirm that, in coming to your decisions and providing guidance to the Gibraltar
Government and the people of Gibraltar, you apply your own judgement without taking
direction from any authority in the United Kingdom or elsewhere. We have to ask this
because your snap decision to side with the UK Government’s experts against the
advice of the JCVI raises what we consider to be a reasonable suspicion that you are
effectively executing decisions made in London.

3. In the event that you are taking direction, or even just guidance, from the UK
authorities, please explain in as detailed and technical language as you think fit why
you preferred the decision of the Chief Medical Officers of England, Scotland, Wales
and Northern Ireland to the cautious approach of the JCVI.

4. What data, research or scientific information has Public Health Gibraltar used to justify
its rejection of the JCVI’s expert opinion against the vaccination of healthy 12-15-year-
olds at this time?

5. The World Health Organisation (WHO) is awaiting the results of trials before dealing
with the advisability of vaccinating 12-15 year-old children. In what sense are you in a
better position than the WHO to determine the safety of such vaccination?

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 CHARLES
GOMEZ&
6. Children are overwhelmingly not at a risk of the effects of Covid-19 infection. Is QM PANY
vaccine rollout plan for healthy 12-15-year-olds in the child’s best interest or iWT AT LAW

intended to protect adults and vulnerable people whom they may come into contact
with? If you consider this to be in the child’s best interest, please provide us with the
data which would explain why.

7. What information, and in your opinion as Director of Public Health, has led to the
decision to vaccinate healthy children between 12-15 years old despite the risk of
adverse effects such as myocarditis in otherwise healthy children?

8. Do you expect to see any adverse events occurring in children between the ages of 12-
15 and older in Gibraltar, such as myocarditis, as a result of the Covid- 19 vaccination
campaign?

9. How many doses will the 12-15-year-old cohort be given?

10. What systems will be in place to monitor side-effects in children, particularly in boys,
who data shows are more susceptible to developing myocarditis and pericarditis as a
result of the Pfizer vaccine?

11. Given the risk of myocarditis in young males, will your department strongly
recommend to vaccinated children that they should stop all sporting and other strenuous
physical activities for a period of at least 6 weeks following vaccination? If not, why
not’?

12. What follow up and what systems has your department put in place to collate adverse
events in Gibraltar and bring to prompt public attention in a full, frank and fair manner?

13. Will parents and patients be able to self-report to a local reporting system, such as is
the case in the United Kingdom under the culTent Yellow Card system?

14. If adverse events in children do occur, as in the case of myocarditis following the Pfizer
vaccine, who within Public Health Gibraltar is to be held accountable and what care
and compensation will be provided?

15. Do you agree that there are no long-term studies on the effects of the Pfizer, or any
other Covid-l9 vaccination, on children between 12-15?

16. Does your department have a detailed record of adverse reactions to the Pfizer vaccine
in the period since it was initially rolled out on the 10th of January 2021? If not, why
not?

17. If you have a detailed record of adverse reactions which are linked to the Pfizer vaccine,
please disclose them.

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 CHARLES
GOMEZ&
COMPANY
18. Whether or not your department has kept a record of adverse reactions, the BARRISTERS AT LAW
fact remains
that, in countries such as the United Kingdom, there is a fair amount of detail,
even at
this early stage, in the vaccination campaign of short-term adverse reactio
ns. In
recommending to the Government of Gibraltar that it is advisable to vaccin
ate children,
you will have taken data from other countries into account. Please provide full,
frank,
fair and candid disclosure of all the information that you have as to advers
e reactions.

19. The provision of this information sought above, particularly the last few
paragraphs,
must be brought to the attention of parents if you are to fulfil your strict
legal,
professional and ethical obligation to inform them such that their consen
t is based on
currently available scientific research.
In view of the urgency in ensuring that parents and children are fully inform
ed of all the
potential risks, we invite you to disseminate your answers to the above questio
ns to the
Gibraltarian pLiblic in a timely manner.
If you are confident that the vaccine poses no risk at all to children ‘. ho are
otherwise not
vulnerable to serious illness on account of Covid— 1 9, you should have no difficu
lty responding
to us in detail; providing your sources which have allowed you to digress from
the views of the
J C VI.
In responding. please do not shy away from technical explanations so long
as they are clear.
because as you may have been informed, the Gibraltarian public has a relatively
high standard
of education.
We thank ou in advance for your kind attention to this letter and look lbrward
to hearing from
OU.

‘Yours sincerely.

Charles Gomez

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 CHARLES
GOMEZ&
COMPANY
Schedule - History of lack of information and candour BARKISTERS AT LAW

We tried to engage with the previous Director of Public Health, Dr. Sohail Bhatti.
on several
occasions but were unable to get a substantive reply, despite the Attorney General of
Gibraltar
asking that we be given answers.
Below are some of the issues:
Mask Mandate Reversal

On the 7t11
ofAprH 2020. Dr. Bhatti made the tollowing statements in response to questio
ns by
GBC:
UrLLIll “

- (0:58 mark) what does the mask do and how long will it he effective? As a PPE
‘. . .

instrument it’s not very effective because it stops working after 15 minutes and
the
latest research suggests that the virus stays on your mask for 8 hours. So, if you
don’t
take it off appropriately, you’ll get yourself contaminated.”

— (03:01 mark) we found when nurses were wearing masks that people with dementia
“. .

were getting quite fearful and they didn t understand,.

— (03:3 1 mark) ‘‘1 don t necessarily think that people walking in the streets need to wear
masks: I dont think it adds anything. The way I see the way people use masks,
.
they’re
actually showing a lot of their own internal anxiety and fear ‘hen they wear masks
’’.
Tirneline for Mask Mandates in Gibraltar

On the 21 of August 2020: Mask wearing became compulsory within retail premis
es
-

(Press Release 5592020).

On the 28’ of August 2020: Masks required by law in all covered public spaces
(Press
-

Release 571 ‘2020).

On the 27th of September 2020: Mask requirements by law extended to: retail,
hair and
-

beauty. estate agencies. medical and health services, motor vehicle

dealers,
gymnasiums, restaurants, cafeterias and bars. takeaways, places of work, open
public
areas and funerals.

Our Questions

On the 23rd of November 2020, we wrote to Dr. Bhatti, asking that we be provid
ed with the
scientific research documents and data which led to his reversal of his initial advice
.
We asked that he provide the information available to him at the time which was used
to advise
the Government of Gibraltar that the use of masks in retail, buses, and especially
in open public
spaces, were effective at reducing transmission of SARS-COV-2.

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 CHARLES
GOMEZ&
COMPANY
BARRISTERS AT LAW

To date, we have not received a response with any research, data or scienti
fic evidence which
was used at the time of advising the Government of Gibraltar to reverse his
advice in relation
to mask wearing.
We would kindly request that you provide us with the research, data or
scientific evidence
which was used by Public Health Gibraltar in 2020 to advise the Govern
ment of Gibraltar to
introduce mask mandates.

However, please do not let this point distract from the urgent matter of vaccination of 12—i 5—
year-old children.

Letter to the Director of Education

On the lO’ of June 2021, we wrote to the Director of Education.
Attached please find a true copy of our letter.
In summary, you will see that we have raised the following points:

a) There is an issue of potential defamation which is not relevant to this corresp

ondence.
and you are of’ course not asked to deal with this.
b) Issues relating to legislative power and the C’onstitution. These legal issues are
pertinent
to your activities as Director of Public Health. and we respectfully sugges
t that you
should take immediate. independent legal advice on them.
c) 1 he question of’ informed consent, which again is a matter
of relevance to your current
activity. We do not consider that there is sufficient, or any proper advice
on the pal-t of
Public Health Gibraltar or any other organ or agency of the Gibraltar
Government
which would allow a citizen to make an informed decision.
(I) The incidence of myocarditis which, even as “long ago” as the l0 j’
June 2021. was
already a salient point of’ concern among independent medical experts.
e) The question of legal liability befalling any official or government body
who promotes
or facilitates measures which could he detrimental to the health of individ
uals.
You will be surprised to learn that, although our letter to the Director of
Education has been
discussed within the Department of Education, we have not received the courtes
y ofa response.
In the 39 years that we have been practising as harristers and solicitors in Gibral
tar. we cannot
recall a previous occasion in which a letter issued by us was completely ignore
d.