Written By: Nirmalya Dutta | Updated : March 22, 2015 10:51 PM IST
Despite being one of the three polio endemic countries, various organisations in the state still haven't embraced polio vaccination. Forget embraced, there is a common belief that the polio vaccines are in fact, part of a conspiracy to destroy the Islamic way of life and this is leading to fatal attacks on polio vaccine workers including women. Pakistan needs its female polio vaccine workers because strict laws that prevent women from talking to strange men can be circumvented with female workers.
Fuelled perhaps by the fact that undercover CIA agents posed as polio vaccine workers to capture Osama Bin Laden, there's widespread suspicion about the vaccination drive. Many extremist groups believe the polio drops are in fact a Western conspiracy to make Muslim men sterile and women more excited and less bashful!
In what can only be termed as a barbaric act, nine volunteers (five of them women) were shot dead in the last three days. Extremist group Jundullah claimed responsibility for the attacks and its leader Ahmad Marwat told a radio channel that polio vaccinations were strictly forbidden in Islam and his group would continue the attacks on vaccination teams.
In the wake of these killings the UN and WHO suspended its anti-polio drive until a government investigation was completed. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called the killings 'cruel, senseless and inexcusable.' However, the government of Pakistan is set to continue.
But the show will go on
Government agencies however won't shut down the operation despite UN and WHO pulling out till further notice. This hasn't deterred the government of Pakistan which will continue its immunisation programme. On Thursday, the state deployed 3000 police personnel to protect the 6000 polio volunteers as they went about their business to give more drops. 'It would have been an easy thing for us to do to stop the campaign,' said a government official. 'That would have been devastating.'
Learn from thy neighbour
Pakistan only has to look to its neighbour to realise the tremendous success of the polio vaccination drive. India was one of the most polio-stricken countries in the world but massive vaccine drives have managed to eradicate the disease and the country has been polio free for the last two years!
