Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed several chinks in the armour of public health infrastructure across the world. However, the impact of the pandemic has been assessed primarily from the perspective of the ‘privileged’ members of society. The experiences of the ‘other’ world inhabited by the marginalised communities, who have had their livelihoods crushed under the weight of the pandemic, have been scarcely documented. As thousands of migrant workers were more scared of death caused by hunger rather than the disease itself, the various steps taken by different countries to curb community transmission have unveiled the ugly side of these measures. For example, as several states such as the US, the UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, and India/Bharat imposed lockdowns, border closures, quarantines, inter alia, the most vulnerable section of the human population has been the migrant workers, especially those individuals who were employed in the unorganised sector. Thus, the global health crisis has unravelled deep-rooted deficiencies, racial biases, and an overall lack of concern and empathy for the lesser privileged, apart from the growing socio-economic divide between the rich and the poor. This research paper aims to explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on migrant workers in the informal sector by exploring the measures imposed by the US, the UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, and India/Bharat and analyse how their fundamental rights, including the right to development, were compromised. Through this paper, the author provides a five-point strategic framework that can be adopted globally to prevent such instances in the future.
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Introduction to the Special Issue
- Articles
- Covid-19, State Effectiveness, and Core Values of Political Morality
- Post-Pandemic Challenges of Textile Industry Workers in India: Analysis of Social Security Laws of Select Asian Countries
- Implementing Post-Pandemic Economic Parity: A Potential Restoration Through Distributive Justice
- Law and Development: A Comparative Law Aspect
- The Draft International Covenant on the Right to Development and Its Implications for Cooperation in Global Health Crises
- The COVID-19 Pandemic and the Right to Development: A Tale of Two Worlds
- Changes in South-American Fiscal Rules in a Post-Pandemic Scenario: A Case-By-Case Analysis
- Online Trials in China: Legal and Institutional Approaches During Different Stages of the Pandemic
- Ending 1990s Law and Development Ideas, Paradox of Path Dependence In Economic Planning Institutions Under Covid-19: SA’s Response
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Introduction to the Special Issue
- Articles
- Covid-19, State Effectiveness, and Core Values of Political Morality
- Post-Pandemic Challenges of Textile Industry Workers in India: Analysis of Social Security Laws of Select Asian Countries
- Implementing Post-Pandemic Economic Parity: A Potential Restoration Through Distributive Justice
- Law and Development: A Comparative Law Aspect
- The Draft International Covenant on the Right to Development and Its Implications for Cooperation in Global Health Crises
- The COVID-19 Pandemic and the Right to Development: A Tale of Two Worlds
- Changes in South-American Fiscal Rules in a Post-Pandemic Scenario: A Case-By-Case Analysis
- Online Trials in China: Legal and Institutional Approaches During Different Stages of the Pandemic
- Ending 1990s Law and Development Ideas, Paradox of Path Dependence In Economic Planning Institutions Under Covid-19: SA’s Response