Day: December 10, 2020

(Xinhua)09:47, July 09, 2020

GENEVA, July 8 (Xinhua) — More than 50 heads of state and government, alongside global employers and trade union leaders, gathered on Wednesday for a global summit to discuss comprehensive approaches to responding to the COVID-19 pandemic as the world of work has been plunged into unprecedented crisis.

Its not a choice between health or jobs and the economy, said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, We will either win on all fronts or fail on all fronts.

The COVID-19 pandemic has rendered millions of workers and businesses vulnerable worldwide. More than 90 percent of the workers continue to live in countries that have implemented some form of workplace closures.

In the second quarter of this year, global working hours dropped by 14 percent, equivalent to the loss of 400 million full-time jobs, data from the International Labour Organization (ILO) showed.

Meanwhile, frontline health workers are under unprecedented pressure. The world has a duty to protect those who protect us, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at the summit.

In a video message, Guterres underscored the importance of global solidarity as the crisis cannot be solved by any country alone.

The message of solidarity was also addressed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel. We must prevent the coronavirus from producing another crisis. The pandemic has led us…to a very painful situation and has led us to the conclusion that we must work together internationally, she said.

Whether the countries are in the north or the south, whether they are richer or poorer, we either come out of this all together or we all die together, Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa told the summit.

The forecasted recovery will not bring employment back to the pre-pandemic levels and the outlook for the global labour market in the next six months is highly uncertain, the ILO said last week.

The Global Summit, the largest-ever online gathering of its kind, is part of a five-day virtual event organized by the ILO to examine issues including countering the economic and social impact of the crisis.

(Xinhua)10:35, July 09, 2020

ISTANBUL, July 9 (Xinhua) — The U.S. decision to quit the World Health Organization (WHO) is very unfortunateand it will not bode well for any stakeholder if relations are severed, the United Nations (UN) agencys top official in Turkey said.

It is very unfortunate … The COVID-19 pandemic only underscores the need and criticality of this collaboration to continue, rshad Ali Shaikh, interim head of the WHOs Turkish office, said in a recent interview with Xinhua at the Turkish headquarters of the WHO in Ankara.

The United States on Tuesday officially submitted its notification of withdrawal from the WHO to the UN secretary-general, following an announcement made in May. The move came amid a rising number of coronavirus cases throughout the Americas over the past week.

This is not an issue of U.S. and WHO alone; this is an issue affecting the globe and WHO is part of the globe, Shaikh said.

WHO is what member states make it, he said, stressing that it will not bode well for any stakeholder if relations are severed.

The support given by the United States, a founding member of the health agency, should countinue, he said, adding that the U.S. role in addressing epidemics from smallpox to the recent outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo is very important.

The WHO official also stressed the need for global solidarity to fight the COVID-19 pandemic as it is an issue affecting the world in its entirety.

In this regard, he applauded Chinas decision to share knowledge with Turkish officials and scientists throughout the outbreak, as well as with other countries afflicted by the pandemic.

China has been very gracious in sharing its knowledge and experience with other nations and sending medical supplies, and has been a very good example of global solidarity, he said.

The official said that many countries are still looking up to the Chinese experience and lockdown measures in order to curb the spread of the virus in their respective territories.

Shaikh pointed out that there is no limit to cooperation in fighting the virus, clinical trials to develop a vaccine, and real-time sharing of knowledge.

We cannot let our guard down in the fight against the coronavirus, he stressed, adding that the fight should go on relentlessly until an effective vaccine is found as this pandemic has literally rewritten the book of outbreak and prevention for experts.

He expressed optimism about the efforts of several countries, including China, to develop a vaccine, saying that there is tremendous hope, and that the WHO is collaborating to this effect with nations and relevant agencies.

(Xinhua)13:34, July 09, 2020

LOS ANGELES, July 8 (Xinhua) — California reported on Wednesday the biggest daily jump of 11,694 COVID-19 cases as the positivity rate and hospitalization rate are trending upward in the 14-day average in the most populous U.S. state.

The California Department of Public Health also confirmed 114 new COVID-19 deaths in a daily update. So far, 289,468 confirmed cases and 6,562 deaths have been registered across the state.

The 7-day average number of new cases in the state is 8,116 per day, compared with a 7-day average of 6,062 for the previous week, according to the California Department of Public Health.

California Governor Gavin Newsom Wednesday said hospitalizations have increased 44 percent state-wide and ICU admissions have increased by 34 percent over the last two weeks.

The governor said California has continued to stockpile N95 and surgical procedure face masks as officials are working with hospitals to become equipped to take on more patients amid the pandemic.

The state now has an estimated 232 million procedure masks and 46 million N95 masks in its supply inventory.

Newsoms administration struck a deal with Chinese company BYD to buy N95 masks and surgical masks after the outbreak of COVID-19 in the state. BYD is shipping 150 million N95 masks to California. The new batch of N95 is on the way after 110 million surgical masks from BYD have been distributed to help California reopen safely, according to a statement released last month from the governors office.

(Xinhua)13:35, July 09, 2020

WASHINGTON, July 8 (Xinhua) — Workers in food and accommodation, and wholesale and retail trade, are the hardest hit for having the least teleworkable jobs, with the poor, the young and women being more vulnerable than others, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Young workers and those without university education are significantly less likely to work remotely, Mariya Brussevich, Era Dabla-Norris and Salma Khalid wrote in an IMF blog published Tuesday, noting that the crisis could amplify intergenerational inequality.

The three IMF economists said women could be particularly hit hard, threatening to undo some of the gains in gender equality made in recent decades.

This, according to them, is because women are disproportionately concentrated in the hardest-hit sectors like food service and accommodation, and women carry a heavier burden of childcare and domestic chores, while market provision of these services has been disrupted.

The authors also found that part-time workers and employees of small- and medium-sized firms face a greater risk of job loss. In developing economies, in particular, part-time workers and those in informal work face a dramatically higher risk of falling into poverty, they said.

In a recently published study, the three IMF economists estimate that over 97.3 million workers, equivalent to about 15 percent of the workforce, are at high risk of layoff and furlough across the 35 advanced and emerging countries in their sample.

They found that the impact on low-income and precariously-employed workers could be particularly severe, amplifying long-standing inequities in societies.

Our finding — that workers at the bottom of the earnings distribution are least able to work remotely — is corroborated by recent unemployment data from the United States and other countries, they said. The COVID-19 crisis will exacerbate income inequality.

The authors also found significant differences across countries even for the same occupations. It is much easier to telework in Norway and Singapore than in Turkey, Chile, Mexico, Ecuador, and Peru, simply because more than half the households in most emerging and developing countries dont even have a computer at home, they said.

As for what governments can do in this situation, the authors urged policymakers to focus on assisting the affected workers and their families by broadening social insurance and safety nets to cushion against income and employment loss, saying wage subsidies and public-works programs can help them regain their livelihoods during the recovery.

To reduce inequality and give people better prospects, governments need to strengthen education and training to better prepare workers for the jobs of the future, they said. Lifelong learning also means bolstering access to schooling and skills training to help workers displaced by economic shocks like COVID-19.

Noting that this crisis has clearly shown that being able to get online was a crucial determinant to peoples ability to continue to engage in the workplace, they said investing in digital infrastructure and closing the digital divide will allow disadvantaged groups to participate meaningfully in the future economy.

(Xinhua)13:36, July 09, 2020

WASHINGTON, July 8 (Xinhua) — U.S. President Donald Trumps decision to officially quit the World Health Organization (WHO) has sparked outrage among U.S. lawmakers, raising concerns over the ongoing global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

To call Trumps response to COVID chaotic and incoherent doesnt do it justice. This wont protect American lives or interests — it leaves Americans sick and America alone, Senator Robert Menendez, top Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee, said Wednesday on Twitter.

By withdrawing from the WHO, Trump has further abdicated U.S. global leadership, Congressman Ami Bera, who represents Californias 7th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, lamented on Twitter.

His go-it-alone approach puts Americas health and security at risk, he said Wednesday. Bera, a physician, also told local media that the United States and the WHO had worked hand in hand to eradicate smallpox and nearly defeat polio.

If the WHO is to blame: why has the U.S. been left behind while many countries from South Korea to New Zealand to Vietnam to Germany return to normal? he said.

(CGTN)09:57, July 08, 2020

(Photo/Chinanews.com)

As the coronavirus first reported in China now ravages the U.S., Asian Americans are continuing to wrestle with a second epidemic: hate. Hundreds of attacks on Asian people have been reported, with few signs of decline.

Asian Americans in California reported 832 incidents of discrimination and harassment in the last three months, according to the new data collected by Stop Asian American Pacific Islander Hate, the leading aggregator of incidents against Asian Americans during the pandemic.

The incidents included 81 assaults and 64 potential civil rights violations.

The new report released on Wednesday by Stop AAPI Hate shows that incidents of racism and discrimination are not isolated to any particular area but are a statewide problem in California as Asian Americans have reported incidents in 34 counties so far in the most populous state of the United States, adding that incidents are reportedly taking place in California in retail stores, in the workplace and online.

Anti-Asian American harassment has also been further stoked by President Trumps repeated use of the term Kung Flu in recent rallies, and as recently as last night, comments on Twitter scapegoating China for the United States devastating failure to control the coronavirus, said the group in a statement.

They noted that discrimination and harassment of Asian Americans in California has drawn national attention recently after a series of videos in Torrance, California featured a woman using graphic racist language against Asian Americans.

The viral video of racism in Torrance is one example of hundreds. Its the tip of the iceberg of anti-Asian American hate and discrimination, said Russell Jeung, chair and professor of Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University. Without government accountability, we risk COVID-related racism against Asian Americans becoming deeply entrenched, ultimately impacting the lives of millions of people in California and around the country.

Racist demagoguery matched with anti-immigrant policies have always been used to deny Asian Americans full social and political rights, said Cynthia Choi, co-executive director of Chinese for Affirmative Action.

In California, we have to do more than condemn racist rhetoric 鈥?we must take bold action today to address attacks whether they happen in grocery stores, in the workplace or in the schoolyard, Choi added.

Stop AAPI Hate sent a letter to California governor Gavin Newsom Tuesday night to recommend the establishment of a Racial Bias Strike Team comprised of key state agencies and departments to oversee workplace and employment discrimination, provide mental health services to vulnerable communities, and offer support to local Asian American-serving organizations.

Meanwhile, Asian Americans in New York have been helping themselves confronted with the increase of targeted hate crimes by equipped themselves with GoPros and guns.

When Eddie Song leaves his Manhattan home, it can feel like heading into battle. The Korean American startup founder and avid rider dons his armored motorcycle jacket, motorcycle gloves, a skull face mask and a GoPro camera.

The GoPro is on all the time whenever I leave the house now. Basically its a rolling camera, Song said. With the combination of looking intimidating and having the camera 鈥?if they pick a fight with me, they know Im prepared.

During the pandemic, an online hate reporting center has received nearly 1,500 reports of racist abuse against Asians nationwide since it launched March 19. Stay-at-home orders mean in-person run-ins are down somewhat but vandalism of Asian-owned homes and businesses is up, according to the advocacy groups running the portal.

Its difficult to predict whether incidents will dramatically drop once society goes back to normal, Levin, a former NYPD officer, said, noting that the pandemic is unprecedented.

Generally, when theres a catalytic event, hate crimes tend to decline and have a bit of a half-life, he said. But that presupposes a singular catalytic event as opposed to a rolling one.