AI for zero tolerance against attacks on health workers

ISLAMABAD: The South Asia Regional Office of Amnesty International (AI) has urged Pakistan to make explicit, a zero-tolerance attitude to violence and discrimination against health workers, and to equip all health workers—be they in the public or private sectors—with adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in view of their critically important role in the response to COVID-19.

In a July 1 dated letter addressed to the PM’s Special Assistant on Health Dr Zafar Mirza, AI has recommended prompt investigation of acts of violence against health workers in a thorough, impartial and independent manner in order to bring the perpetrators to account. In crafting its response, the government has been advised to acknowledge that some health workers may be at additional or specific risk due to their multiples and intersecting identities.

AI has also expressed extreme concern over the devastating impact of coronavirus on health workers in Pakistan, as well as instances of violence against them. The letter makes a reference to the ‘devastating tally’ of 5,367 health workers across Pakistan being infected, with 58 dead due to consistent and repeated exposure to the virus.

AI has flagged several instances of violence against health workers across Pakistan since April. “Hospitals have been vandalised, many doctors have been attacked, and one was even shot by a member of the Counter Terrorism Force,” it states. The letter quotes the Young Doctors Association as saying that health workers are being attacked on a daily basis and that the exact number is ‘beyond count.’

The AI has also called upon the government to immediately implement protocols to ensure that managers of all health facilities conduct an analysis of what risks their respective health workers face regarding violence, and to make adequate security arrangements to address those threats. “Set up systems to document any violent incidents, discrimination, and/or stigmatisation faced by health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic and encourage workers to report such incidents promptly,” AI has recommended, hoping that the government would consider implementation of its advice.

The letter also contains detailed mention of specific episodes of violence against health workers, most of which came either after they followed SOPs for returning the dead body of a COVID-19 victim to their relatives, or where medical facilities were unable to provide medical care due to an acute scarcity of resources.

In this regard, the letter refers to the May 29 incident at the Dr. Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital in Karachi, which was vandalised by an angry mob after there was a delay in handing over the body of a suspected COVID-19 patient to their family. It also makes a mention of the June 2 incident in Peshawar, where a doctor was attached after an altercation with the family members of an infected patient, where he was stripped of his PPE and punched in the face, breaking his nose. “There are multiple videos of doctors and nurses being harassed online. According to media reports, there have been at least 20 attacks in KP alone,” the letter points out.

The letter also mentions despite reports of hospitals having being forced to turn away even critical patients due to shortage of beds, ventilators, and other life-saving equipment, several ministers have been claiming that hospitals have the necessary resources to cope with the emergency. “This puts health workers in danger as people do not believe them when they say they do not have room for more patients,” it states.

While acknowledging that even the best and most well-resourced healthcare systems have struggled to cope with the pandemic, AI believes it is critical that Pakistan takes all reasonable measures to protect its frontline health workers. “That doctors, nurses, paramedics, ambulance drivers, and other medical staff continue to help people in the face of such imminent danger to their lives underscores their courage. It also highlights how much they deserve, not only our gratitude but also the state’s protection,” AI’s Head of Office Omar Warraich states in the letter.