...Poliomyelitis is a disease caused by infection with the poliovirus. Between 1840 and the 1950s, polio was a worldwide epidemic. Since the development of polio vaccines the disease has been largely wiped out in the civilized world. However, since the vaccine is known to make Moslem pee-pees shrink and renders females sterile, bookish, and unsubmissive it is not widely used by the turban and automatic weapons set...
in Pakistain. As reported in this paper yesterday, during the last vaccination campaign in Balochistan
...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it...
, parents of over 21,000 children refused to allow their offspring to be inoculated against the crippling disease. Of these, 21pc declined on religious grounds. This was pointed out during a meeting in Quetta that provincial health officials held with prominent intellectuals and Learned Elders of Islam. With a vaccination drive scheduled to start soon in Balochistan, the religious leaders were asked to play a proactive role, particularly in the high-risk Quetta block, which includes Quetta, Pishin and Killa Abdullah districts. Significantly, these areas were the most affected by polio last year in the province which recorded around 25 polio cases. The religious leaders present at the meeting reaffirmed their continued support for the polio eradication campaign.
However,
if you can't say something nice about a person some juicy gossip will go well...
the clergy needs to do far more than mouthing platitudes and giving reassurances. It has considerable sway over societal attitudes to education and healthcare, particularly in the country's more conservative areas. Vaccination against polio is no exception. In fact, religious sentiment has been especially exploited on this issue by bully boyz to derail the anti-polio effort, render the work of vaccinators exceedingly dangerous and even justify the murder of around 70 polio workers and members of their security detail since 2012. Religious leaders can play a vital role to change the narrative and counter those peddling disinformation. However,
if you can't say something nice about a person some juicy gossip will go well...
the endeavour must be sustained and relentless enough to develop critical mass. In 2013, hard-line holy man Maulana Samiul Haq
...the
Godfather of the Taliban,leader of his own faction of the JUI. Known as
Mullah Sandwichfor his habit of having two young boys at a time...
issued a fatwa urging parents to have their children vaccinated against polio; he later appeared in a photo-op with PTI chief Imran Khan
... aka
Taliban Khan, who ain't the sharpest bulb on the national tree...
who administered anti-polio drops to his grandson. Aside from dramatic visuals, such one-stop, flash-in-the-pan efforts achieve little of substance. Pakistain's clergy could look to the stunning success in polio eradication by India where Learned Elders of Islam committees -- including representatives of various Moslem sects as well as a doctor -- were formed to address parental reservations regarding vaccination, reportedly found most often among Moslem communities. The strategy is often cited as having played a definitive role in India's campaign. Meanwhile,
...back at the shouting match, Bart was wondering if fisticuffs would be appropriate at this point...
although authorities in Pakistain have even jugged
Drop the heater, Studs, or you're hist'try!
parents/guardians for refusing to get their children inoculated against polio, they could perhaps -- as a somewhat less draconian sanction -- also consider linking the issuance or renewal of certain documents to parents allowing their children to be vaccinated.