Op-Ed Contributors

Protecting society's most vulnerable

By Karen McColl (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-07-26 08:27

In Europe, the current financial difficulties further threaten disadvantaged groups. It is clear that the poor and vulnerable are hardest hit by the economic crisis. To make matters worse, they are also likely to be disproportionately affected by the harsh public spending cuts being introduced by some governments.

Michle Roelens, the workshop leader on the European side, drew attention to the fact that such issues are also relevant for China. Europe's consumers are China's customers, she pointed out, and the Western financial crisis is likely to have knock-on effects for China.

What can be done - in Europe and China alike - to protect the vulnerable in times of crisis? Governments, media, non-governmental organizations and business all have a role to play. It falls to governments to establish a basic framework of social protection for everyone living in a country. This should enable access to water, food, an income, housing and healthcare. The government's role should also include making laws to protect workers, tenants and people with disabilities.

There is also a path-finding role for non-governmental organizations to drive things forward. This means working directly with disadvantaged groups to highlight their needs and to then implement projects that demonstrate services that meet these needs. Having shown that the needs exist and how they can be met, the aim should be to persuade governments to take over the services or change the way mainstream services are provided to meet the needs of disadvantaged groups.

The author is with Doctors of the World, an international medical humanitarian organization.

(China Daily 07/26/2010 page8)