Indian Lockdown Puts Poor at Risk: Daily Brief
Indian lockdown puts poor at risk: Hungary's prime minister set to seize unlimited power today; displacement camps in Myanmar are a possible catalyst for COVID-19; detained Libyans are at heightened risk for COVID-19; concerns for those in immigration detention in Europe, too; coronavirus is obstructing the painstaking path to equal pay in sports; the US should be supporting international justice rather than undermining it; and Portugal grants temporary residency status to all asylum seekers and migrants.
India has implemented strict containment and relief measures to reduce the spread of coronavirus. In enforcing them, the authorities should take all necessary steps to ensure that everyone has access to food and medical care, and that the poor and marginalized are not mistreated.
A health emergency shouldn't be used as an excuse to seize unlimited power. Today, Hungary is likely to adopt a law allowing prime minister Viktor Orbán to do exactly that.
In Myanmar, displacement camps holding hundred thousands of people are tinderboxes for COVID-19 transmission. The government should urgently lift the restrictions on movement, health care, internet, and humanitarian aid to prevent a rapid virus spread amongst the most vulnerable.
Just like the overcrowded displacement camps, congested detention facilities are at heightened risk for the COVID-19 virus. In Libya, the health care system has already been under pressure, making it even more crucial to prevent the pandemic from spreading among detainees.
There's also serious concern for people in immigration detention in European countries amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
An unsurprising byproduct of the COVID-19 pandemic is that sports events globally have been cancelled. For female sports professionals in the United States this comes on top of ongoing hurdles, blocking the painstaking path to equal pay.
Read our experts' take on why the US should be supporting international justice.
And to end on a hopeful note, Portugal will grant temporarily residency status to all asylum seekers and migrants in the country, so that they can access lifesaving healthcare and welfare benefits.