NIHR conducts a Field Visit to ASRY
In activation of the monitoring role of the National Institution for Human Rights (NIHR) stipulated in its Incorporation Law, and based upon its plan to follow-up the application of standards relating to the protection and promotion of human rights in laborers’ accommodation places in accordance with the powers entrusted to it, a delegation of the NIHR has conducted a field visit to the headquarters of ASRY (Arab Shipbuilding and Repair Yard Company), in order to review the precautionary measures taken by the company to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) in particular, and to review on grounds the extent to which it observes the recognized human rights such as the right to adequate housing and the right to heath, which are deemed as basic human rights, and the accessibility of various human rights in general.
The NIHR appreciates the integrated program prepared by the company and the adoption of transparency and clarity in the transfer of information to the delegation, who reviewed some of the company’s facilities, such as restaurants, medical centre and laborers’ housing area, whether those affiliated to the company or other companies cooperating with it. It was found that the company had taken distinctive proactive steps to combat the spread of the Coronavirus among laborers, as an operations room round the clock was established equipped with an electronic program to follow-up the conditions of laborers, rented a number of apartments outside the company’s building for the purpose of quarantine, issued a guide for ways to combat the spread of the Coronavirus and a number of instructional posters in a number of foreign languages, conducted medical examinations for laborers on an ongoing basis, and provided appropriate preventive tools. The delegation observed the cleanliness of laborers’ housing, the accessibility of all safety measures and emergency exits and the diversity of meals provided to the laborers. A number of laborers interviewed by the NIHR delegation praised the level of care and the various services provided to them in general and during this pandemic in particular.
