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| India-Pakistan |
| Vicious anti polio vaccine campaign in India by Islamists |
| 2006-07-31 |
| LUCKNOW: As the tally of polio cases reported from 15 districts rises to 106 — highest in the country and also in the state during the past four years — the government machinery goes into a huddle. The big jump in the graph, as against 29 cases identified last year, has made Government of India convene an emergency meeting to "rethink and beef up the strategy to tackle the virus circulation in Uttar Pradesh". The meeting is slated for July 28 — just two days before the state takes up its 6th round of pulse polio immunisation drive this year. Although senior officials attribute the spurt to the predictable four-year cycle (cases reported in 1998-900, and 2002-1242), what is bothering them, however, is an obviously well-calculated strategy to derail the drive. There are reports of a systematic misinformation campaign being carried out in the western belt, particularly in the worst-affected Moradabad division which is leading to a stiff minority resistance to the polio vaccine. Just before a vaccination drive, mysterious posters and handbill appear out of nothing with malicious propaganda in the affected pockets, confided official sources on Tuesday. The mischief started in May 2005 when an Urdu newspaper carried a highly inflammatory write up and things have never been the same again ever since. The write up penned by one Monis Bushra Abidi and titled "These drops of poison" made its appearance on May 27, 2005. Portions of the cleverly written piece are being quoted in posters or whisper campaigns, warning Muslins against the government-sponsored drive and save their progenies from ruination. Polio this year is confined largely to the Muslim-dominated areas in the western UP. Significantly, out of the 106 cases reported so far, 69 cases are are from Moradabad division comprising Moradabad, Rampur, Bijnor and Jytoba Phule Nagar. According to official records, "the virus has affected 74 per cent Muslims this year as against 26 per cent Hindus." As indicated by the special monitoring by a WHO team in June, Moradabad division was found to be "inadequately immunised". Incidentally, the report card of September, October and November 2005 drive, reveal records, was found to be particularly wanting. However, "by June 2006, the number of missing houses has come down from ten to seven per cent," claimed principal secretary, health, Arun Kumar Mishra, on Wednesday. The department, he added, targets to further lower it down to five per cent by July 30. |
| Posted by:john |
| #9 someone started a rumor that any kind of vaccination causes muslim infertility if only it were true |
| Posted by: PlanetDan 2006-07-31 20:40 |
| #8 It's projection. The vaccine infertility rumors are indicative of what muslims would do to infidels if they had the technology to cause infertility. |
| Posted by: ed 2006-07-31 18:32 |
| #7 Ignorant. Ignorant. The people that oppose war with the islamofascists apparently want to jump into the 7th century with them. No polio shots. Burkas. Repression. No rights for women. No tolerance of other religions. No free speech. Bowing to mecca. No freedom. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2006-07-31 17:40 |
| #6 someone started a rumor that any kind of vaccination causes muslim infertility IIRC, this is what the Holy Men(Tm) already said in Nigeria, and might be saying in India... why they don't want their children to be vaccinated is beyond me... to further the "us vs them" mentality, IE muslims as a separate entity that cannot receive anything good from its neighbours (except eventually submission)??? |
| Posted by: anonymous5089 2006-07-31 17:24 |
| #5 The vaccine contains bacteria grown in a culture of pig blood. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-07-31 17:21 |
| #4 No, Machiavellian would be if someone started a rumor that any kind of vaccination causes muslim infertility (brain damage wouldn't work as that is done by thorough indoctrination in any case). |
| Posted by: twobyfour 2006-07-31 17:18 |
| #3 Virus reservoir, propagating to non muslims as well, rendering eradication campaigns useless. |
| Posted by: anonymous5089 2006-07-31 17:15 |
| #2 Hey, if the Izzies want to refuse the Polio vaccine and all die from it, that solves a lot of problems India has with them and not have to play the Bad Guy. Or is that thought too Machiavellian? |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2006-07-31 17:08 |
| #1 The mischief started in May 2005... Mischief? TP-ing trees is mischief, this is vile and evil. May the perpetrators burn in Hell. /My brother and sister both contracted polio in India in the 1950s. My sister's case was very mild with minimal permanent damage, but my brother nearly died and was left with a useless arm. |
| Posted by: Xbalanke 2006-07-31 17:04 |