U.K. government statistics reveal that thousands of people died within weeks of being found “fit to work” and having their welfare benefits cancelled.
The release of the statistics follows a protracted campaign from journalists and activists, including a Change.org petition that garnered almost 250,000 signatures. Many have already accused the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) of stalling its response until after this year’s election in May.
The most shocking mortality data comes from a document about disability-related benefits. Between December 2011 and February 2014, 81,140 people died within six weeks of “flowing off” benefits such as ESA (Employment and Support Allowance), which the government pays to people who cannot work due to illness or disability.
Over the past five years, the DWP has made a public effort to reduce the number of people claiming government benefits. This included the introduction of “fit to work” assessments, which are used to determine whether people are qualified to receive disability benefits.
The newly published documents show that 2,380 former ESA claimants died within two weeks of being declared “fit to work.”
have y’all even seen the statistics for how many afghan and palestinian children – not even adults, but literal babies – have PTSD? it’s like 90%. if not higher. because of imperialism acted out by violent soldiers. like why should i give a fuck about the PTSD you got from killing infants and their families?
In 2008, the European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Journal published a study that suggested up to 70% of children in the Gaza strip may be suffering from PTSD. Whereas, in 2009, the NIH (National Institute of Health) published a study which estimated that 20% of American veterans returning from the war in Iraq and 11% of veterans returning from the war in Afghanistan suffer from PTSD. Out of almost 200 children aged 9-18, 70% may suffer from PTSD. That’s very close to 3/4th of the children surveyed. Children that are witnesses to the bombings, abuse, and the general upheaval of their home life and society as a result of war, including the effects of long-term poverty and familial turmoil. But boo hoo for the terrorists soldiers, right?
(In 2014, The Arab Journal of Psychiatry published a study that states as high as 91.4% of children in the Gaza strip may be suffering from PTSD, which is probably the statistics OP is referencing. The research begins on page 76.)
In two days about a quarter of a million people will be made stateless. They will have no homes, no passports, and no civil rights. There are several reasons for this, but the primary reason is racism.
At issue is a ruling by the Constitutional Court in the Dominican Republic to strip away the citizenship of several generations of Dominicans:
According to the decision, Dominicans born after 1929 to parents who are not of Dominican ancestry are to have their citizenship revoked. The ruling affects an estimated 250,000 Dominican people of Haitian descent, including many who have had no personal connection with Haiti for several generations.
Dominican Republic has always had a longstanding hatred towards Haiti for years but what they’re doing is literally taking anyone who’s family lineage cannot be traced back to 1929, and putting them on a one-way bus back to Haiti, whether they were born in the DR or not. They don’t care.
The US State Department has denounced the Dominican government for this plan, and pointed out that it is a gross violation of human rights according to the U.N. charter.
Below are 5 things you need to know about what is happening in the Dominican Republic:
The DR government has revoked the citizenship of more than 100,000 Dominicans born in the country of Haitian parents.
Many of the Dominican-born Haitians facing the looming threat of deportation have never visited Haiti or know anyone there.
The criteria the government will use in deciding who is to be bussed out of the country is “dark-skinned Dominicans with Haitian facial features.”
The DR government claims to have established a legalization process for Dominican-Haitians wishing to remain in the country, but the system is close-to-impossible, according to sources on the ground.
Even though currently the deportation of Dominic-Haitians persists as only a possibility, all evidence points to it happening.
The Day After (4/28/15, PART 2): Residents across Baltimore begin the hard work of cleaning up and rebuilding their city. Still no answers or arrests for the murder of Freddie Gray. Praying for both healing AND justice in Baltimore today. #staywoke #farfromover
Kimchi and Justice 