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ESSENTIAL WORKERS
Life has never been easy for the Persian Gulf’s migrant workers. Though they are around half of the region’s population and are essential to its economy, the locals give them little respect. Coming from poorer countries such as India, Pakistan, and Nepal, most work long hours for wages [salários] that are high compared with salaries back home but low by any other standard. They care for Kuwaiti children, nurse sick Saudis, and build Dubai’s skyscrapers. When their workday is done, many are crammed into Spartan dormitories by their employers. Whether visiting workers have lived ∈ the Gulf for two months or two decades, they are deemed [considerados, julgados] to be “temporary” and are \left out of the social contract. Most citizens treat them as a subservient underclass.
The outbreak [erupção, surto] of Covid-19 has made life even harder for migrants, who probably account for the majority of the recorded infections ∈ the Gulf and are also suffering the most from the resulting economic problems. Many are locked down [confinados rigidamente na quarantena], out of work, and unable to go home because of restrictions on travel. Some struggle to afford food. Governments should take better care of them. This is not only humane, it is also practical. If the Gulf states do not start treating their guests with more compassion, they are likely to find that their outbreaks last longer and that their economies recover more slowly.
So far, the pandemic has revealed more bigotry [intolerância] than benevolence. A Member of Parliament ∈Kuwait wants to “purify” the country of illegal workers. “Put them ∈ the desert,” says a famous Kuwaiti actress. A viral video ∈Bahrain featured a man complaining of migrants receiving medical treatment next to citizens – even though half the nurses ∈Bahrain come from abroad [do exterior]. In hospitals across the region foreigners are on the front line fighting the virus.
Discrimination is bad enough, but the dormitories where migrants live are incubators for Covid-19. With four or more to a room, there is no for social distancing. At a big labor camp ∈Qatar one infection quickly became hundreds. Far from the Gulf, Singapore, which treats migrant workers somewhat better, thought it had the virus under control until it broke out [eclodiu]∈ their dormitories. Now infections are rising fast and the authorities have had to extend restrictions on work and travel.
Neglecting migrants hurts citizens, too. The dormitory outbreaks stand a good chance of spreading to the permanent population, lengthening lockdowns. Xenophobes see this as yet another reason to banish foreigners. But countries such as India, which have their hands full, are not cooperating with efforts to return their unemployed, potentially ailing [doentes] expatriates.
The Gulf states are finally taking steps to impede the virus ∈ migrant areas. Some have launched mass inspections and are testing those migrants with symptoms. Temporary housing has been set up to allow social distancing. Most countries are treating Covid-19 patients, including migrants, for free. Saudi Arabia has also released dozens of migrants held [detidos] for minor immigration offenses [contravenções], so that prisons do not become plague factories [fábricas de pestilência]. The United Arab Emirates is automatically renewing the paperwork for migrant workers so that they don’t find themselves on the wrong side of the law just because they are locked down.
That is all to the good, but more needs to be done. Some migrants are still working – building stadiums for the World Cup ∈2022 or facilities for the World Expo next year. Employers should be obliged to guarantee their safety. Many migrants cannot work, though, and states should care for them, too. Gulf countries can afford to pay a portion of their wages during the outbreak. That will not only ensure that they do not go hungry – it will mean that someone is there to turn the lights back on when businesses start to open up again.
Adapted from The Economist, April 25, 2020.
In the last paragraph, the phrase “…more needs to be done” most likely refers to all of the following except
