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Mozambique: Seven Deaths in Cholera Violence in Zambezia
19 February 2010
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Maputo ? Seven people have died in disturbances caused by disinformation about the spread of cholera in the central Mozambican district of Gurue, in Zambezia province, reports the Beira daily paper "Diario de Mocambique".
The rumour has been spread that health workers and traditional leaders, far from fighting cholera, are spreading the disease. One of those murdered was the community leader at Tetete, in the locality of Lioma, who was accused of collaborating with health activists in order to spread the disease.
According to the Zambezia Provincial Police Command, 54 people have been arrested in connection with cholera riots, and a further 15 wanted by the police are still at large. The police have also seized spears, machetes and similar weapon used in the riots.
Cholera is a perfectly real threat in Zambezia. In the current outbreak 671 people have been diagnosed with the disease in Gurue, of whom 19 have died.
But such is the ignorance of the causes of the disease that even local teachers have been taken in by the rumours that it is spread by a mysterious white powder, left on the ground in public places. Anyone who steps on this powder, it is said, will catch cholera and suffer from acute diarrhoea.
This rumour led to an effective shut-down of schools in parts of Gurue, as teachers and pupils alike refused to visit the schools for fear of stepping in the dreaded white powder.
Officials of the Gurue district authorities tried to overcome these fears by personal example. They visited the places where the powder had allegedly been sprinkled, walked on the supposedly contaminated ground, and then presented themselves in public showing that they had not contracted any disease.
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Zambezia provincial governor Francisco Itai Meque visited Gurue on Monday, in an attempt to persuade the local population to accept the recommendations of the health authorities on the hygiene measures needed to fight the spread of cholera.
He warned that rumours generate instability, which damaged the struggle against poverty. He told the crowd that the only way people spread cholera is by failing to wash their hands. People who did not know that cholera was caused by poor sanitary conditions, and instead believed that malicious individuals were deliberately spreading the disease, were complicit in keeping the country in poverty, he accused.
The best way to fight cholera, Meque said, was by following the rules of personal hygiene and by using chlorine, or other water purifiers, to ensure that water is fit for drinking.
Mozambique: Seven Deaths in Cholera Violence in Zambezia
19 February 2010
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Email|Print|Comment
Share:
Maputo ? Seven people have died in disturbances caused by disinformation about the spread of cholera in the central Mozambican district of Gurue, in Zambezia province, reports the Beira daily paper "Diario de Mocambique".
The rumour has been spread that health workers and traditional leaders, far from fighting cholera, are spreading the disease. One of those murdered was the community leader at Tetete, in the locality of Lioma, who was accused of collaborating with health activists in order to spread the disease.
According to the Zambezia Provincial Police Command, 54 people have been arrested in connection with cholera riots, and a further 15 wanted by the police are still at large. The police have also seized spears, machetes and similar weapon used in the riots.
Cholera is a perfectly real threat in Zambezia. In the current outbreak 671 people have been diagnosed with the disease in Gurue, of whom 19 have died.
But such is the ignorance of the causes of the disease that even local teachers have been taken in by the rumours that it is spread by a mysterious white powder, left on the ground in public places. Anyone who steps on this powder, it is said, will catch cholera and suffer from acute diarrhoea.
This rumour led to an effective shut-down of schools in parts of Gurue, as teachers and pupils alike refused to visit the schools for fear of stepping in the dreaded white powder.
Officials of the Gurue district authorities tried to overcome these fears by personal example. They visited the places where the powder had allegedly been sprinkled, walked on the supposedly contaminated ground, and then presented themselves in public showing that they had not contracted any disease.
Relevant Links
Southern Africa
Mozambique
Health
Zambezia provincial governor Francisco Itai Meque visited Gurue on Monday, in an attempt to persuade the local population to accept the recommendations of the health authorities on the hygiene measures needed to fight the spread of cholera.
He warned that rumours generate instability, which damaged the struggle against poverty. He told the crowd that the only way people spread cholera is by failing to wash their hands. People who did not know that cholera was caused by poor sanitary conditions, and instead believed that malicious individuals were deliberately spreading the disease, were complicit in keeping the country in poverty, he accused.
The best way to fight cholera, Meque said, was by following the rules of personal hygiene and by using chlorine, or other water purifiers, to ensure that water is fit for drinking.