Polio vaccination banned in South Waziristan
In yet another setback to the polio eradication campaign in the country, the Mullah Nazir group in Wana subdivision of South Waziristan banned polio vaccination in the agency on Monday till the United States halts all drone strikes in the tribal region.
According to the Taliban pamphlets distributed in Wana, Western powers were running a spy network in the region in the garb of immunisation. The leaflet went on to cite the example of Dr Shakil Afridi, the doctor who helped the CIA hunt down Osama bin Laden by conducting a fake polio vaccination programme in Abbottabad.
Earlier, warlord Hafiz Gul Bahadur banned the administration of oral polio vaccine to children in North Waziristan, also demanding cessation of US drone attacks.
The pamphlet went on to compare polio drops to sugar-coated poison, adding that Western powers had never been loyal to Muslims.
“If they [the United States and its allies] were so sincere with the Muslims, then why did they bomb us so mercilessly,” the pamphlet said.
The distributed message also gauged US sincerity, questioning why two million children had suffered in Iraq due to the lack of medicines in the 90s, referring to US sanctions on the Saddam Hussein regime.
Furthermore, the leaflet also discussed the psychological effect drone strikes have had on children in the tribal region.
“On the one hand, they are killing innocent children in drone strikes, while on the other hand they are saving their lives by vaccinating them … it’s like a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” the pamphlet said.
The decision to ban polio vaccination was taken by the higher council of North Waziristan Mujahideen, according to the pamphlet, which also warned all polio teams to bring their campaign to a close or accept responsibility for any future mishap.
A local resident, requesting anonymity, told The Express Tribune, that the pamphlet requested parents to avoid the vaccination of their children till drone strikes continued in Waziristan.
There has been no official reaction from the political administration or security forces till the filing of this report. (With additional input from Zulfiqar Ali)
Published In The Express Tribune, June 26th, 2012.
COMMENTS (17)
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@mr. righty rightist: do u really mean that? i would much rather be killed 1000 times than to risk any harm to my children. i pity your children. you deserve their disgust and hatred. u deserve the world's contempt-if u mean that selfish thought. you sd never be a father; u r not a man if u wdnt protect your children with your life. no real man would chance his children being crippled for life to save his own worthless skin.
@let there be peace: Actually the point of immunization is that the polio does not survive well outside a host. If the entire population is immunized it breaks the cycle of infection and later generations might not need the immunization. Having said that, i do agree those that intend to keep the world shackled to diseases that have already been conquered worldwide should infact be quarantined because their regressive thinking is more damaging and infectious than polio. You can only lead the horse to the water. You cannot force it to drink.
whom are u going to affect , your own area. Polio(a deadly disease) wont be eradicated
without getting into debate, is it possible to ask islamic parties like jamat e islami, muslim hand or any other islamic NGO to come forward and do the task. i know it will be like admitting the embargo by militants but its not a time of argument.
So....making children suffer due to polio is their idea of revenge against the drone attacks?...(standing ovation to the Mullahs for their 'intelligence')...BRAVO!
@mr. righty rightist: WHAT? Man oh Man... this is SAD... really sad! You really meant that?
Why should world suffer from resurrection of Polio because of Islamic republic of Pakistan. All Pakistanis should be completely banned from travelling out of Pakistan. All products from Pakistan should be banned, who knows what is infected with Polio virus?
Religion at it's finest. That is, total ignorance.
I wonder how many Mullahs would demand the Taliban to be banned when they kill innocent children in madrassas and buses by bombs.
haha good
and we still believe in such propaganda. how much i hate tribune for not letting us literally use the words that we feel like saying to the talibans, USA and liberals...
@daggardalla: "Mindless freaks controlling our tribal areas. Where is our army?"
They are still sulking over the loss of Bin Laden.
Why only polio drops?
Why not -- No more doctors, hospitals or medicines until the drone strikes are stopped?
I agree with the logic.
I would rather cripple my son than being killed by a drone.
Natural selection.....
that means drones are actually doing their work...
Mindless freaks controlling our tribal areas. Where is our army?
Just more evidence on who's in charge in the Waziristan's -- so much for all the sovereignty blather.