AlaskaDenise
In Memoriam
http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailnational.asp?fileid=20060905.G01&irec=0
Yuli Tri Suwarni and M. Azis Tunny, The Jakarta Post, Bandung, Ambon
The government is going ahead with a plan to use the controversial HVN2 vaccine on more than 300 million poultry nationwide to fight bird flu from September to December.
Musnis Suatmodjo, the director of animal health services at the Ministry of Agriculture, said the ministry had prepared 60 million doses of the H5N2 medicine.
There is still confusion in official circles as to whether vaccinations and the H5N2 medicine will be an effective way to fight the virus. International health organizations favor mass culls of poultry in affected areas over vaccinations.
The virus would likely spread more easily during the rainy season, Musni said, because of the increasingly humid air and a dirtier environment caused by flooding.
"The target of the mass vaccination is 300 million chickens ... and we will do it in stages," Musni said.
He said bird flu cases had now been found in 29 of the country's 33 provinces. To prevent the spread of the deadly virus, the vaccinations would be repeated within three to four months, he said.
Musni said the government had already distributed 31 million doses of the vaccine throughout the country. The decision to distribute the vaccine was made after thorough consideration, he said.
"Within the last two years we have imported about 60 million doses of the H5N2 vaccine."
Musni said earlier vaccination efforts had not been effective because many regional administrations did not have livestock offices. Those that do are understaffed and are unable to reach many at-risk areas, he said.
In a related development, a 2-year-old boy was admitted to the Hasan Sadikin Hospital in Bandung on Monday suffering from bird flu symptoms. The boy from Indramayu, was treated for a high fever and respiratory difficulties.
In Ambon the regional administration said it had intensified efforts to keep Maluku free from bird flu.
On Sunday, animal quarantine officers and the Ambon Police seized at least two tons of fertilizer made from bird droppings at Nania village in Baguala district.
The fertilizer, transported from Makassar by sea, was believed to be contaminated with the bird flu virus. It was intended for sale to vegetable farmers in Nania and neighboring villages.
I Putu Terunanegara, head of the Ambon animal quarantine office, said the authorities would closely monitor the importation of chickens and fertilizer into the area.
Putu said the office would examine samples of the fertilizer to ascertain whether it was contaminated with the virus.
If there were traces of the virus, the fertilizer would be incinerated, he said.
Maluku, North Maluku, North Sulawesi and Gorontalo are the four provinces in the country that remain free from bird flu.
.
Yuli Tri Suwarni and M. Azis Tunny, The Jakarta Post, Bandung, Ambon
The government is going ahead with a plan to use the controversial HVN2 vaccine on more than 300 million poultry nationwide to fight bird flu from September to December.
Musnis Suatmodjo, the director of animal health services at the Ministry of Agriculture, said the ministry had prepared 60 million doses of the H5N2 medicine.
There is still confusion in official circles as to whether vaccinations and the H5N2 medicine will be an effective way to fight the virus. International health organizations favor mass culls of poultry in affected areas over vaccinations.
The virus would likely spread more easily during the rainy season, Musni said, because of the increasingly humid air and a dirtier environment caused by flooding.
"The target of the mass vaccination is 300 million chickens ... and we will do it in stages," Musni said.
He said bird flu cases had now been found in 29 of the country's 33 provinces. To prevent the spread of the deadly virus, the vaccinations would be repeated within three to four months, he said.
Musni said the government had already distributed 31 million doses of the vaccine throughout the country. The decision to distribute the vaccine was made after thorough consideration, he said.
"Within the last two years we have imported about 60 million doses of the H5N2 vaccine."
Musni said earlier vaccination efforts had not been effective because many regional administrations did not have livestock offices. Those that do are understaffed and are unable to reach many at-risk areas, he said.
In a related development, a 2-year-old boy was admitted to the Hasan Sadikin Hospital in Bandung on Monday suffering from bird flu symptoms. The boy from Indramayu, was treated for a high fever and respiratory difficulties.
In Ambon the regional administration said it had intensified efforts to keep Maluku free from bird flu.
On Sunday, animal quarantine officers and the Ambon Police seized at least two tons of fertilizer made from bird droppings at Nania village in Baguala district.
The fertilizer, transported from Makassar by sea, was believed to be contaminated with the bird flu virus. It was intended for sale to vegetable farmers in Nania and neighboring villages.
I Putu Terunanegara, head of the Ambon animal quarantine office, said the authorities would closely monitor the importation of chickens and fertilizer into the area.
Putu said the office would examine samples of the fertilizer to ascertain whether it was contaminated with the virus.
If there were traces of the virus, the fertilizer would be incinerated, he said.
Maluku, North Maluku, North Sulawesi and Gorontalo are the four provinces in the country that remain free from bird flu.
.