HRCP demands immediate relief for daily-wagers, other poor people

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) is alarmed by the fallout of the national health emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on the poor and vulnerable, particularly on daily-wage labourers and workers who rely on the gig economy to keep their households afloat.

With schools, offices, shops and businesses being shut, the option of working from home is a privilege available only to white-collar knowledge workers. “Even if saved from illness, low-income groups will still contend with acute food insecurity. The lack of adequate social safety nets, such as paid leave and medical benefits, means that the overwhelming majority of workers and their families are especially vulnerable in this crisis,” the body said in a press release.

The HRCP also expressed its disappointment with the economic policies of the incumbent government, which it said had failed to deliver for the majority population. It is time to shift priorities, from subsidising rich individuals and institutions in the name of stabilisation and growth, to putting the wellbeing of ordinary citizens at the centre of any policy planning, it said.

The commission demanded that immediate cash and food transfers be organised for the poor and for daily-wage earners, in addition to ensuring their access to free medical care in these testing times. It also demanded that health workers who were at the frontlines of this emergency be provided the protective gear they needed to do their jobs safely and effectively. “It is not charity, but the responsibility of the state, to ensure food security and access to healthcare for all its citizens,” it said.