People belonging to different walks of life in a state have their due rights and a government on behalf of the state has to make sure that those rights are provided to the people. And, in this regard the government must not have any sort of discrimination. People, belonging to different strata, groups and fields of life must be given equal opportunities to attain the privileges they deserve. No field of life is unimportant or degrading; all have their importance and due place within a society, and a society develops when all these fields are developed and run by determined individuals.
Mining is one of the sectors that require arduous labor and the people working in this sector face a lot of difficulties and dangers. The miners have to take care of careful safety measures in order to ensure safe mining.
Afghanistan is one of the countries where mining sector is one of the most important sectors and there are great hopes and expectations from it. Afghan authorities and people believe that the sector can prove to be backbone of Afghan economy in the times to come. However, the miners working in this sector are not giving their due rights and they face very thorny situation. There are no proper equipments and the safety measures are not taken care of; therefore, many miners lose their lives each year.
According to a recent report by Mehfoozul Haq Kakar in Pajhwok Afghan News, dozens of miners lose their lives every year to mine collapse and explosions inside tunnels. Many workers are injured, disabled or infected with diseases. The situation is really tragic and Afghan authorities require taking serious measures in order to control the situation.
According to the report mentioned above, All Afghanistan Federation of Trade Unions (AAFTU) President Mohammad Liaqat Adil has said that the main problem the miner faced was the lack of resources necessary for their protection. He accused owners of mines of mercilessly using the energy of workers and paying no heed to their lives. He further added that prevention is better than cure. Instead of giving monetary assistance to families of miners after their accidental death, equipment which can save the lives of workers should be arranged.
He also stressed timely payment of wages to miners and called for efforts at securing their lives. He said each miner had a family and if something bad happened to him, his family suffered and his children forced into labor.
If Afghan authority is really interested in developing the mining sector and making it shoulder the weak Afghan economy, it must guarantee the rights of the miners; otherwise, making benefits out of mining would only remain a dream.