COVID-19 disaster, worldwide

This 18 May 2020 video from the USA says about itself:

Dr. Fauci Predicted a Pandemic Under Trump in 2017 | NowThis

‘There will be a challenge to the coming administration in the arena of infectious diseases.’ — Watch Dr. Anthony Fauci predict a pandemic under the Trump admin back in 2017.

From daily The Morning Star in Britain, 18 May 2020:

India records highest number of new infections so far as lockdown eased

INDIA recorded its highest daily total of Covid-19 infections so far today — after easing lockdown restrictions at the weekend.

Its 5,242 new cases bring its infection total to 96,000, Asia’s highest. Authorities say the surge in infections is down to the return of millions of migrant workers to their home villages.

The mass human migration was sparked when lockdown was imposed on March 25, with many employers abandoning their staff and servants expelled from their employers’ homes. Millions were stranded when the government closed state borders, but these were subsequently reopened.

Modi promotes “herd immunity”, vows “quantum jump” in pro-investor reforms. By Wasantha Rupasinghe and Keith Jones, 18 May 2020. As the Modi government expands its reckless back-to-work drive, India reported yesterday its biggest daily jump in COVID-19 cases to date.

From the World Socialist Web Site, 16 May 2020:

Tamil Nadu cleaners demand improved safety from Covid-19

Around 1,000 cleaning workers in Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu joined demonstrations organised by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) on May 12. The frontline workers demanded special daily payments, regular medical check-ups and safety equipment to protect them from COVID-19 infections.

Over 400 conservation workers from the Tiruppur Corporation participated in protests in Palladam, Udumalpet and Uthukuli, and threatened to intensify their action if their demands were not granted by May 17.

Sanitation workers in Madurai demonstrated to demand permanent jobs for around 1,700 contract and 700 daily wage employees in the city. The workers said that they have put their lives in danger attempting to contain the spread of COVID-19 and that the government must make their jobs permanent. …

Government hospital nurses in Pakistan to demand COVID-19 protection

On Tuesday nurses from government hospitals used International Nurses Day to demonstrate outside the Karachi Press Club. They were protesting the government’s failure during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) and the virus’s impact on frontline health workers.

Protesters demanded that authorities immediately pay all withheld allowances, including health risk and health professional payments and to implement a previously agreed service structure. The protest was called by the Sindh Young Nurses Association which said the campaign will continue until its demands are met.

Even as death toll climbs, Indonesian government urges workers under 45 to resume work. By Owen Howell, 18 May 2020. Indonesian epidemiologists have warned that a return to work will dramatically increase transmission of the virus and put the entire population, regardless of age, at extreme risk.

“The idea of school and teaching right now fills me with anxiety, dread and stress… it usually fuels me with joy, excitement and happiness”. Australian teachers speak out about unsafe schools and excessive workloads. By Sue Phillips, 18 May 2020. A survey of 10,000 teachers reveals that fewer than one in four felt safe working at schools at the end of term one and 60 percent had high levels of anxiety about returning to work.

From daily The Morning Star in Britain, 18 May 2020:

Ukrainian doctor slams ‘war’ conditions in country’s hospitals

Market reforms leave hospitals on verge of bankruptcy

A UKRAINIAN doctor has spoken out about the “war” conditions faced by the country’s healthcare workers as they seek to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dr Olha Kobevko said that trying to treat patients was like being “on the front line” given funding and staff shortages, speaking to a reporter as she tried to fix a broken breathing machine after failing to find an electrician to help.

Dr Kobevko, the only infectious-disease specialist in a hospital in Chernivtsi, said the hospital lacked a centralised oxygen supply system, so nurses have to refill “oxygen pillows” and rush them to patients.