Covid-19 Relief For Minorities in The Middle East
by Martin Gray Content WriterThe coronavirus has engulfed us all in its wrath and caused
a worldwide pandemic, forcing us to hide behind closed doors and keeping
ourselves protected from the disease. However, despite all our efforts to stay
safe, a large segment of the population is still falling victim to the virus.
According to the Worldometer, the latest coronavirus
statistics deduced that there had been more than 65 million corona cases from
which a little more than 45 million patients were recovered. In comparison, 1.5
million cases resulted in death.
There have been more than 16.8 million reported corona
diseases in the Middle East, with reported deaths going up to approximately
296,000 and rising. Among many Middle East countries, Iran has had one of the
highest coronavirus cases, with Kuwait and Bahrain coming next.
During an online press conference, the Middle East Head of
WHO had said, "We are at a critical threshold in our region." The
World Health Organization has claimed that the Middle East is dealing with a
decisive moment in their fight against the coronavirus as cases continue to
grow due to the lack of strictness in the lockdown measures.
Even though medical care should be equal for all, the
minorities in the Middle East have continued to suffer as they have been deprived
of basic medical care to help themselves. To ensure that the government is
providing the basic healthcare needs to these people, the following aspects
should be considered.
Medical Charges
Indigenous people and minorities are the poorest communities
amongst most communities present in the Middle East. With their lack of
finances, they cannot provide themselves with proper medical care, which is why
the coronavirus symptoms continue to grow and lead to deadly situations.
There has to be some sort of leverage that allows free of
charge medical bills for these minorities so that they are able to access basic
care in order to keep themselves safe from getting the virus symptoms in the
first place.
Documentation
Some of the minorities present in the Middle East have their
citizenship get challenged, such as the Maragoli Community in Uganda.
Simultaneously, some people in Rome and Ukraine do not carry around or own
certain legal documents such as their ID cards. Without these documents, they
have been restricted access to certain facilities, which includes getting
treated at a hospital.
This has placed minorities at a major disadvantage, so the government should alter the system of asking for documentation into something
within reasonable conditions that even minorities can fulfill.
Diversity in Healthcare Information
Aside from not getting basic medical care, the other major
reason minorities and indigenous communities are being affected by the virus is
that they are not fully aware of the precautions that need to be taken to avoid
being exposed to disease symptoms. Hence, information on staying safe
during Covid should be available in multiple languages so that everyone can
read and educate themselves on these necessary measures.
Discrimination should not play a part in depriving every
citizen of their rights. People like Marc Hanna Malek, a NY based Lebanese
American Hedge fund manager, philanthropist, and Middle East Christians
Rights Advocate, specializes in providing fund strategies to help the public
pick themselves up when met with a financial crisis. Like him, many other
leading figures in the Middle East should respond to the pandemic crisis and
offer a helping hand to one another to come out triumphant from this war
against Covid-19.
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Created on Dec 10th 2020 09:29. Viewed 251 times.