Government response to Covid-19 sloppy
HRCP study evaluates and makes recommendations

Islamabad, 19 July. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) demands that parliamentary oversight be restored immediately to all decision-making related to the Covid-19 pandemic. The government’s overall response has been marred by inconsistent messaging at the top, which must be rectified by ensuring that the federal and provincial governments present a united front in this time of crisis. HRCP also stresses that the rights of the vulnerable and marginalised must be at the centre of all efforts related to pandemic prevention, containment, and treatment—not only in this instance but as a matter of principle and policy in the long term.

Based on an analytical fact-finding study released today, HRCP finds that the pandemic has eroded people’s trust in, and respect for, ruling institutions and the governing elite. The health emergency has exacerbated existing structural discrimination and inequalities, and laid bare misplaced socioeconomic priorities.

The report includes a survey of a cross-section of citizens countrywide, of whom only 25 percent thought the steps taken by the federal government had been effective in tackling Covid-19. Around 94 percent felt that wage labour had been the most affected by the pandemic. More than half were concerned that religious minorities would be discriminated against in the distribution of relief items or access to healthcare, and around 70 percent felt that women had become increasingly vulnerable to domestic violence.

Any revival of economic activity will have to be done by generating demand and avoiding any downsizing. In addition, to make resources available for employment generation and wider, more effectual social protection, the government must realise the urgent need to cut back on redundant government divisions and departments and non-combat defence expenditure.

In terms of public health, an overarching strategy should be built around preventive healthcare. Adequate personal protective equipment must be made available to all frontline workers, including janitorial staff, at all levels. In the short term, the government must fill vacant positions in the provincial health service systems and arrange to use district hospitals for quarantine and isolation.

Women’s health, employment, and domestic abuse are areas of special concern that need immediate attention. Governments and civil society must not lose sight of the vulnerability of religious minorities, persons living with disabilities, the elderly, and transgender persons, especially in terms of their access to healthcare and aid distribution. The problems identified in access to online education and connectivity must be rectified at the earliest. Serious attention must also be paid to the state of Pakistan’s prisons, which are especially susceptible to infectious diseases.

This is a defining time for government at all levels. Their performance will be judged in relation to how they have handled this crisis, and there is much that can still be done to mitigate its effects.