Zimbabweans denied right to health

The Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights (ZADHR) said the right to health care was enshrined in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UNDHR) and said Zimbabweans should demand that the government implements policies and programmes that will further citizens right to health care.

As Zimbabweans engage in the process of drafting a new constitution, the example set by the UNDHR 60 years ago should be followed, the ZADHR said in a statement to mark the 60th anniversary of the UNDHR last week.

The right to health should be protected in the Bill of Rights of a new Zimbabwe constitutionthis action will then need to be followed up with legislative and other measures to give effect to the constitutional protection.

According to the ZADHR to realise the right to health the six month old inclusive government must respect the right to health, protect the right to health and fulfill the right to health by providing timely and appropriate health care, adequate supply of water and basic sanitation, maternal, child and reproductive health and access to health related information among others.

The countrys health sector has over the years come under heavy strain due to inadequate government funding and lack of foreign currency to purchase drugs, medicines and an exodus of experienced doctors and nurses abroad where pay and working conditions are better.

President Robert Mugabe, praised for building one of the best public health system in the developing world during the early years of independence, denies charges that his controversial policies over the past decade have ruined the health sector.

The veteran leader instead Western sanctions for crippling Zimbabwes economy and depriving the government of resources to fund the health sector.

Reviving the health sector is among key objectives of the unity government but there are fears that an ongoing strike by doctors could reverse the small gains made by the administration since February.