Issue 2 Right to Health and Privacy
Right to Health
7. The NHRC is pleased to see the MOE and the private sector have started
to provide online counseling during the pandemic, as some students in
children's forums said they do not need to worry about being
stigmatized when seeking online counseling. Nevertheless, the NHRC
is concerned that the suspension of counseling services in areas with
insufficient digital resources or counseling personnel due to the
pandemic may lead to further instability of the psychological status of
students.
Right to Privacy
8. The NHRC learned from children's forums that during the period when
classes were conducted online, some teachers forced students to turn on
cameras, breaching the privacy of the family, or had long class hours
that affected students’ vision and concentration.
Issue 3 Rights to Know and to be Heard
9. The NHRC learned from focus groups that students were not informed
immediately of the information provided at school meetings on
pandemic prevention, either at the beginning of the outbreak in 2020 or
during the level-3 alert in 2021.
10. For the rights of minority children to know and to be heard, please see
§6.
NHRC Recommendations
11. The Government should review relevant preventive measures in
accordance with the UN COVID-19 Human Rights Guidance Note, and
the restrictions should be based on the principle of minimal violation of
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