ADDIS ABABA: Ethiopian authorities must “stop harassing” its health workers, who have been on strike for weeks demanding better wage conditions, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Thursday.
Police said in May that they had arrested 47 health workers for taking part in the nationwide strike, which has halted non-emergency services at public hospitals and teaching institutions.
An online healthcare workers’ group told HRW that 148 healthcare workers had been arrested between early May and early June, though the figure could not be corroborated.
“The Ethiopian authorities have resorted to repressive tactics instead of addressing healthcare workers’ concerns about their livelihoods and safety,“ said Laetitia Bader, HRW’s deputy Africa director, in a statement.
“The government should immediately lift the suspension of the Ethiopian Health Professionals Association and stop harassing healthcare workers,“ she added.
The association was suspended earlier this month for supporting the strike and HRW says health professionals have been subjected to “threats and intimidation”.
A surgeon told HRW he earned just $80 a month despite being in the top tier for doctors’ pay.
“I cannot even change my shoes,“ he said. “I cannot even properly feed my child.”
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, in power since 2018, told a meeting of health workers this week that their demands were legitimate but that the movement had been “hijacked” by political interests.
Ethiopia has Africa’s second-largest population with an estimated 130 million people. A third live below the World Bank’s poverty line of $2.15 per day.
