Fear, Stigma and Othering: The Impact of COVID-19 Rumours on Returnee Migrants and Muslim Populations of Nepal

Pramod R. Regmi, Shovita Dhakal Adhikari, Nirmal Aryal, Sharada P. Wasti and Edwin van Teijlingen
Additional contact information
Pramod R. Regmi: Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Bournemouth University, Bournemouth BH8 8GP, UK
Shovita Dhakal Adhikari: Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Bournemouth University, Bournemouth BH8 8GP, UK
Nirmal Aryal: Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Bournemouth University, Bournemouth BH8 8GP, UK
Sharada P. Wasti: School of Human and Health Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield HD1 3DH, UK
Edwin van Teijlingen: Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Bournemouth University, Bournemouth BH8 8GP, UK

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 15, 1-14

Abstract: The paper explores how COVID-19-related moral panics have led to fear and othering practices among returnee Nepalese migrants from India and Muslims living in Nepal. This qualitative study included in-depth interviews with 15 returnee migrants, 15 Muslims from Kapilvastu and Banke districts of Nepal, and eight interviews with media and health professionals, and representatives from migration organisations. Four themes emerged from our data analysis: (1) rumours and mis/disinformation; (2) impact of rumours on marginalised groups (with three sub-themes: (i) perceived fear; (ii) othering practices; (iii) health and social impact); (3) resistance; and (4) institutional response against rumours. Findings suggest that rumours and misinformation were fuelled by various media platforms, especially social media (e.g., Facebook, YouTube) during the initial months of the lockdown. This created a moral panic which led to returnee migrants and Muslim populations experiencing fear and social isolation. Resistance and effective institutional responses to dispel rumours were limited. A key contribution of the paper is to highlight the lived experiences of COVID-19 related rumours on marginalised groups. The paper argues that there is a need for clear government action using health promotion messages to tackle rumours (health-related or otherwise), mis/disinformation and mitigating the consequences (hatred and tensions) at the community level.

Keywords: COVID-19; migrants; Muslim; moral panic; stigma; fear; Nepal (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/15/8986/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/15/8986/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:15:p:8986-:d:870135

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().