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May 12, 2020A spit and cough attack by a man infected with Covid-19: it is the incredible episode that tragically marked the fate of Belly Mujinga, 47, in Britain, ticket agent at Victoria Station, a large railway station in London.The incident had taken place in March and had seen the woman targeted with a colleague. Not the first crime of its kind, in the United Kingdom and in the rest of the world, against essential service workers engaged in the front line of the trench of the coronavirus emergency, but one of the first known ones that ended with the death of the victim.
Within a few days, both Mujinga and her colleague had fallen ill. Then Belly - who also belonged to one of the ethnic minorities most severely affected by the pandemic - began to experience serious respiratory problems and was admitted to the Barnet Hospital in intensive care. But it was not enough: she died on April 5, as made public now by the union to which she was registered, the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (Tssa).
The fact was reported in the meantime to the railway police, who started an investigation to try to trace the attacker. While the controversy over worker safety is mounting again. "Before thinking about easing the lockdown, the government should ensure that the right precautions and protections are taken," accused Manuel Cortes, secretary general of TSA, in a statement after the presentation in Parliament by conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson of a plan, albeit cautious, towards phase 2 which aims to encourage a partial return to work of some categories. A plan to which greater protection for the working class must be given, warned Cortes, "so that no other human lives are lost".