Comment by the_af
2 years ago
Which countries in the "global south" are you talking about? I live in South America and life is not like this. Like, nothing at all like this; you might as well be describing Narnia or Middle Earth and it would sound just as fantastical.
Just as some examples:
Doctors are quite good here, none of that untrained nonsense you mentioned.
You have safety nets.
If you work formally employed (which granted is not a minor detail, since informal employment is a big problem), you have plenty of sick days, and these are mandated by law; so not at the mercy of the company.
Vacations are mandated by law to be paid according to how long you've been at the company. Nobody can fire you for taking vacations; it's about 2 weeks vacation once you've been working for a year. This is by law, the company is of course free to sweeten the deal.
Our best university is public and free.
While life is not easy for somebody without a family to support them or a good job, the reality is nowhere close to what you imagined.
Now, this is one country and I'm aware the "global south" is large and varied. I'm sure other countries have it worse. But it makes me suspect your global description of the south.
Etc, etc.
I am referring to the "global south" as in the UN definition, which is probably a little dated and could use a revisit (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_North_and_Global_South) Much of these observations from spending a few years living in Southeast Asia. I've been to the untrained doctors. Watched them practice with unclean tools (did not accept care...). The vast majority of people will never achieve formal employment.