The Za'atri camp in Jordan is home to about 80000 refugees. The LWF calls for a rapid, adequate, and inclusive response that protects the human rights of all, and ensures that the needs of the most vulnerable are met. Photo: Public Domain/Wikipedia.
LWF calls on governments, civil society and churches to ensure rapid and inclusive response to pandemic
(LWI) - As the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic continues to spread around the world, the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has called for a rapid and inclusive response that protects the human rights of all and ensures that the needs of the most vulnerable are met.
In its 30 March statement, the LWF raises particular concerns for refugees, the homeless, people with disabilities, the poor, women and children who are exposed to discrimination and violence. Governments, civil society and churches must work together to ensure sure that no one is left behind in the fight to halt the spread of the disease, the statement says.
The LWF calls on governments to allocate additional funding for this work, paying “specific attention to those for whom physical distancing and other protective measures are not accessible.”
The statement urges governments lift existing economic and political sanctions on “countries such as Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, Zimbabwe, Syria, Palestine, and others whose national circumstances make them particularly vulnerable to COVID-19.”
"The world needs a joint effort of people and nations to address the COVID-19 pandemic," said LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Martin Junge. "We must work together, act swiftly, never forgetting the rights and needs of those who are most vulnerable."
