GC Human Rights Preparedness

Economics and human rights have never been close friends. Human rights advocates have rarely engaged with financial systems. Economists, in turn, have rarely considered human right law precepts. However, COVID-19 intensified the need for mutual co-operation to safeguard the most disadvantaged, particularly women, who have suffered disproportionate negative socio-economic impact from the pandemic.

We need to develop a human rights-based approach to the design and conduct of science. As part of this, it is vital to include a sex/gender perspective in clinical trials and scientific studies, including in the development of new vaccines.

The Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children, recently explained the basis of an international law obligation to provide consular assistance to victims or purported victims of trafficking. This development provides clarity on the right of African women migrant domestic workers stranded abroad to demand consular assistance from their government representatives.

There is a direct correlation between the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise of violence against women in Mauritius. Domestic violence is a pandemic within the pandemic which often gets blurred out in discourse and policy. There is an urgent call for action to address this chaotic situation.

Women are hit particularly hard by the pandemic for a myriad of reasons. Reflecting on a webinar featuring three prominent Right Livelihood Laureates, this contribution highlights the need for embracing a feminist perspective aimed at societal transformation as a prerequisite for crisis preparedness.

Stories of abuse and exploitation linked to the overseas domestic-work industry have always dominated the airwaves in the Philippines. However, the global pandemic has added a new layer of ill-treatment for Filipino female domestic workers.