Director of Human Rights Department at Ministry of Foreign Affairs H E Dr. Turki bin Abdulla Al Mahmoud attending the meeting.
Doha: Director of the Human Rights Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs H E Dr. Turki bin Abdulla Al Mahmoud, who chaired Qatar’s delegation to the 4th Regional Arab Conference for Protection and Promotion of Human Rights that kicked off Monday at the headquarters of the Arab League General Secretariat, reviewed the comprehensive plan adopted by Qatar regarding human rights during Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
In his speech at the opening session of the two-day conference under the title “The impact of crises on human rights enjoyment: COVID-19 pandemic as a model”, Dr. Turki bin Abdulla Al Mahmoud said that since the first cases of COVID-19, the health sector with all its facilities has prioritised the right to health for all as a fundamental human right without discrimination.
In addition to providing all health services completely free, the health sector encouraged patients to seek health care when needed without financial restrictions that impede them from receiving treatment, and contributed to containing the spread of infection through community.
He said Qatar has paid attention to the medical staff and the teams responding to the outbreak of COVID-19 infection as it provided them with information through training workshops on infection control and ways to protect themselves. Qatar provided them with personal protective equipment, in addition to conducting periodic COVID-19 tests to ensure their safety. Health institutions took into account the psychological aspect, providing support and counselling for the medical staff and obligating them to take a break whenever necessary to ensure the continuity of the health system’s ability to combat the pandemic.
He pointed out that Qatar received the COVID-19 vaccines on December 21, 2020 and launched the largest vaccination programme ever witnessed by the state on December 23, 2020, according to a plan that extends over four stages, through which the state aims to vaccinate all the population for free.
He said that the first vaccination phase targeted the population groups most vulnerable to complications of serious viral infection — people over 50 years of age, patients with chronic diseases regardless of their age, health care and security workers and others whose nature of work require frequent dealing with infected people such as educational and administrative staff in schools and universities.
He said that according to the latest studies, the vaccination plan has been modified approving a third dose for people who suffer immunodeficiency diseases.
The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) also approved a booster dose of the state-approved vaccines to people who received the second dose more than eight months ago.
He pointed out that MoPH has given industrial zones a special priority due to the concentration of expatriate workers in them, by designing and implementing a package of preventive and curative interventions to reduce the chance of infection outbreak among them and protect them from disease complications.
MoPH also worked on the construction of a hospital to provide the necessary medical care services for them, and transfer of cases that require emergency care to a specialised state hospital.
He highlighted that the medical system Qatar is characterised by free emergency care services and that primary care services are provided at a nominal price, which ensured that everyone has access to health care services when sick. He pointed out that during the pandemic, visits to many private centres and clinics were suspended and remote consultations were replaced, while urgent and emergency services were excluded from the decision to suspend visits, in order for everyone to obtain the necessary medical care.
He also pointed out that a remote medical consultation system was implemented and a medical staff was allocated to communicate with elderly people with disabilities, and those who care for them, to check on their health and psychological condition.
He pointed out that Qatar also paid attention to providing protection for the elderly and people with disabilities as the focus was on the health and well-being of the elderly and people with disabilities. He added that although all groups of society were at risk of getting infected with COVID-19, the category of the elderly and people with disabilities was given the highest priority as they are the most vulnerable to disease complications.
Al Mahmoud stressed Qatar’s commitment to Arab Charter on Human Rights, International Human Rights Law, and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Qatar took into account human rights and its principles calling for the preservation of human dignity and non-discrimination when imposing necessary restrictions such as quarantine and closure, which the state aimed in the first place to limit the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus in society and protect the health of its population groups.
He stressed that Qatar guaranteed the continuation of basic rights such as the right to education through the necessary infrastructure that led to the continuation of the remote educational process, and also guaranteed other human rights such as the right to work and the right to litigation, which enabled the courts to hold court sessions remotely.
