German Foreign Minister Says COVID-19 Worsened Situation With Human Rights Across World

German Foreign Minister Says COVID-19 Worsened Situation With Human Rights Across World

The coronavirus pandemic has aggravated the situation with human rights around the world, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Wednesday, commenting on the government's 14th report on the country's human rights policy adopted earlier in the day

BERLIN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd December, 2020) The coronavirus pandemic has aggravated the situation with human rights around the world, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Wednesday, commenting on the government's 14th report on the country's human rights policy adopted earlier in the day.

According to the foreign minister, the human rights record across the world has been difficult over the past two years, as the number of conflicts and displacement have been growing and led to the deprivation of migrants' rights.

"And the COVID-19 pandemic has made many things even worse. Repressive regimes are exploiting the pandemic to harass human rights defenders and to silence free media. However, women are also particularly affected by the pandemic as caring for children and families mainly falls to them alone. They are disproportionately more likely to lose their jobs, often losing their livelihoods in the process," Maas said, as cited in the ministry's press release.

The minister also noted that Berlin continued to be actively involved in protecting human rights, citing the creation of the Alliance for Multilateralism to support universal values and fight impunity of human rights violations, as well as efforts to protect women and children from sexual violence in conflict at the level of the UN Security Council.