“In Russia, don’t tell the Living about the Dead”
Last week, Human Rights Watch reported an astounding development in Russia involving the suicide of people suffering from pain. The report says that while “the Russian government has finally been pressured into acting,” the action by the Government has not been to treat cancer pain, but to “order the online news outlet to delete details of the suicides.”
“Russia has some of the most restrictive drug laws in the world, creating myriad bureaucratic procedures that impede the prescribing and dispensing of opioid analgesics. In layman terms, the unnecessary restrictions mean that patients who need essential medicines can’t get them.”
Human Rights Watch observes that “It is deplorable that instead of addressing the issue, the authorities make critically important public discussion impossible.”
Here in India, no one stops you from telling these sad stories; but do we really care?
When will we realize that it is not about someone else? Tomorrow, it is going to be our turn.
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