It is an irony that Hong Kong is now stopping to clap for the health care workers who were harassed during last year’s protests. Attitudes around the world towards medics are not always appreciative.
The Geneva Conventions stress neutrality, impartiality and independence in the delivery of humanitarian assistance. In retrospect, the scenes at Chinese University resembled a war zone.
The shooting of a teenaged protester in a close-proximity clash should prompt a review of the police arsenal. The taser stun gun, commonly used in law enforcement around the world, should be considered.
Independent assessments of Hong Kong find it lacking in governance, institutional capacity and risk identification. This could come back to haunt the city if clashes between protesters and police escalate, overtaxing medical facilities.
The basic principles that govern their use, such as legality and proportionality, must be adhered to, and law enforcement bodies that use them – one among an array of crowd-control measures – must be held accountable for their actions.
As the use of automation and AI in surgery becomes more daring and more ubiquitous, safeguards must keep pace with the speed of new discoveries, and responsibilities for safety must be fairly shared between doctor and engineer.