2023-12-10 17:38:30
75 years ago, the ashes of the Second World War and the unprecedented human suffering it caused still smoldering, nations charted a path that would lay the foundations for freedom, justice and peace in the world, guaranteeing the fundamental rights of all. person everywhere.
This principle was enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rightsapproved in 1948. In the Constitution of the World Health Organization (WHO), founded that same year, health is enshrined as one of the fundamental rights of every human being without distinction of race, religion, political ideology or economic condition. or social.
Today, when 75 years have passed since those monumental milestoneswe should be celebrating the impressive leap forward we have taken to advance human rights and improve many crucial health indicators.
However, as 2023 draws to a close, the world finds itself again. mired in wars and crises. The conflicts ravaging Gaza, Israel, Ethiopia, Sudan, Ukraine, Russia, Myanmar and elsewhere, despite repeated calls for respect for international humanitarian law, have caused and continue to cause unimaginable pain. On the other hand, populations deal with the effects of earthquakes, floods and droughts that the climate crisis only worsens.
Among the victims of such crises are health care facilities and workers, and too many people have died or suffered atrocious physical suffering in absolutely unnecessary ways.
The anguish we see on our screens deeply shocks and outrages us. Still, these harrowing images are just the tip of the iceberg when we think about the hundreds of millions of people who are even more widespread. deprived of the right to health.
Not in vain, when the acute phase of a crisis subsides, what remains are the underlying exclusions and discriminations that were hidden in its retreats. To combat these avoidable rights violations, world leaders and others with power and responsibilities must take seriously their duty to respect, protect and make human rights effective.
Civilians bear the brunt and, inevitably, it is the poorest and those who suffer discrimination who suffer the most. Poverty, discrimination and other factors make people more vulnerable to disasters and societies more prone to outbreaks of violence.
To end conflict and build communities that can better prepare for and protect themselves from disasters, we must combat systemic poverty, marginalization and discrimination and dismantle the economic and political structures in which they are rooted.
To achieve this, it is essential that we give priority to the most vulnerable, promoting peace, preventing poverty and protecting those who are most at risk.
However, as the world’s wealth reaches unprecedented levels, so do structural inequalities.
In 2022, the The richest 10% of the world’s population controlled an overwhelming 76% of the planet’s total wealth., while the poorest half controlled just 2%. The well-off exercise a disproportionate influence on the governance of our economies and societies.
Covid-19 starkly highlighted these disparities. According to the United Nations Global Crisis Response Group, 60% of workers today have a lower income level than they had before the pandemic. They are the same people who were instrumental in sustaining us during that crisis. The fact that they suffer such economic hardship makes a mockery of the gratitude that is owed to them.
According to data from the latest Global Inequality Report, the Covid-19 pandemic caused a marked setback in the fight against poverty in the world. In 2020, the global level of extreme poverty registered an increase of 8.4% compared to 2019: more than 70 million people fell into extreme poverty. The world’s poorest lost twice as much income as the richest and global inequality, for the first time in decades, increased.
These very high levels of poverty and inequality not only harm individuals: they alsodeeply undermine social harmony and peace. No one would want to live in such a landscape, no one would want to bequeath it to future generations.
It is not a fatality that we do it. The fact of addressing the problems of our societies and economies and promoting peace from a more coherent perspective and in the key of human rights can be a spring to illuminate policies that reverse the situation.
Governments can take measures to protect people from shocks that suddenly hit societies, whether from an economic collapse or the effects of earthquakes, climate-related calamities, conflicts or pandemics.
Not in vain do we know that, when the dust settles after an acute crisis, the suffering of the most exposed remains: the World Bank estimates that, by 2030, 46% of the world’s poor will live in areas classified as fragile or affected by a conflict, areas where food insecurity is twice as prevalent.
Human rights must be the criterion that guides investment decisions to reduce crisis risks. Rights must be the cornerstone of all conflict prevention, resolution and response efforts. Societies built around human rights are more likely to maintain peaceful relations and avoid escalating conflicts.
At the dawn of a new year, while we call for peace and the protection of human rights and people’s health, we also urge people to subscribe, once again, to the radical commitment to ending poverty.
He WHO Council on the Economic Aspects of Health for All has highlighted a stark and contradictory reality: although at least 140 countries have recognized health as a human right in one passage or another of their constitution, so far only four of them have specified how this objective will be financed.
We must conceive health not as a cost, nor as a luxury only accessible to those who can afford it. We must understand health as a crucial investment in the well-being of humanity. A just economy is one that promotes equality, invests in health care, and ensures equitable distribution of resources.
All countries’ decisions on economic, fiscal, monetary, business and investment issues must be considered and addressed from the perspective of health and human rights.
Fighting poverty, prioritizing peace, investing in education, guaranteeing decent salaries and eliminating all forms of discrimination, then, are so many imperative steps to make the right to health a reality for all and bring about a just and peaceful society.
The recipe for humanity is clear: The time has come to stop putting wealth before health. Only by protecting from poverty, crises and inequality those in the world who are most at risk of suffering from them can we bring about lasting peace, prosperity and health for all.
*The doctor. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) and Mr. Volker Trk He is the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
#Conflicts #crises #reveal #tip #iceberg #worlds #vulnerability #terms #enjoyment #health