The World Health Organization (WHO) has advised governments imposing lockdown restrictions to provide palliatives for their citizens to enable them to comply.
‘How do you survive on lockdown when you depend on your daily labor to eat?” WHO’s director-general, Tedros Ghebreyesus, asked at a press briefing in Geneva on Monday.
Ghebreyesus said he was aware some governments were trying to impose, extend and lift restrictions but added that it should not be at the expense of human rights.
He also said that for countries with large poor populations, particularly in Africa, Asia and Latin America, the stay-at-home order used in some high income countries may not be practicable.
He said it was because most of them were already living in overcrowded conditions with few resources and little access to health care.
He also said that 1.4 billion children who were not in school due to the lockdown stand the risk of being abused.
“News reports from around the world describes how many people are in danger of being left without access to food.
“We also call on all countries to ensure that where lockdown measures are used, they must not be at the expense of human rights. Each Government must assist their situation while protecting all their citizens, especially the most vulnerable,” he said.
But he warned that either way, the lockdown should be lifted slowly, not immediately. He also urged everyone to keep complying with the public health advisory on COVID-19.
Speaking further, he said, “Some countries and communities have now endured several weeks of social and economic lockdown. Some countries are considering when they can lift the lockdown, others are considering whether and when to introduce them.
“In both cases, this decision must be based first and foremost on protecting human health and guided by what we know about the virus and how it behaves. Control measures must be lifted slowly, it cannot happen all at once.”
Hi
I must commend you for this it’s well said. Africans are already suffering from their leaders, people died on a regular basis due to povelty among others
People should be allowed to go and hustle for survival. Poor countries leaders should put a stop to lockdown this approach is doing more bad than good.
Thank Chief
I highly appreciate you for the hard level of intervention in the fight against the covid 19 as to how countries of low economics status should not totally lockdown the country because, the government is unable to provides for it’s citizenry. You are actually a leader who understands living conditions around the world. This message is or good ones that need to be practiced in poorer nation’s.
Malawi should follow these steps required and employee the human rights issue.People must not die of hunger.Some leaders are taking advantage of this pandemic to sort out their problems. This is totally unhuman.
Thanks a lot for your analysis.The government of Liberia needs to look at this lockdown exercise . I think this is causing lot of harms than good;for example, before the state of emergency was imposed by President George weah,we had thirty one cases but subsequently rise to seventy one cases in less than one week.Therefore, the lockdown has no significance,it will only inflict pains, sorrows hunger,frustration and sever poverty.
We need urgent intervention from W. H. O especially in KANO STATE OF NIGERIA, people are dieing very rapidly which was caused by unplanned LOCK DOWN