Vigilance is still everything when it comes to bird flu

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Wed, 09/19/2007 2:54 PM  |  Opinion

Emmy Fitri, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

When it was announced the bird flu virus had claimed human lives on Bali, there was immediate questions about whether the island paradise remained a safe haven for holidaymakers.

There have been concerns the virus will deal a crippling blow to Bali's vital tourism sector, as terrorist bombings did in 2002 and 2005.

The good news is, however, Indonesia has resumed sending samples of the avian influenza virus to the World Health Organization, which will make sure the virus spreading in Bali is the same H5N1 that was first known to jump to humans in 2005, and not a mutated version that is easily spread from person to person.

Luckily, the epidemic has yet to affect tourism on the island, which has maintained its reputation as one of the most popular destinations in the world.

But what if Bali never experienced a bird flu case? Would it be business as usual?

Would the government be sending virus samples to the WHO laboratory? Would it honor new international health regulations issued by the WHO, which require member countries to send their samples to the body?

The government may have continued to hold back the samples and international researchers would have stopped their studies.

Indonesia has recorded limited human-to-human transmission of the bird flu virus (in which the virus affects members of the same family), and samples were taken from last year's cases in North Sumatra.

Who knows what else the health authorities here have done to comply with WHO and its regulations, as discussed in the organization's recent annual report.

Associated Press reported much of the WHO's annual report on the state of the world's health was designed to convince governments to adhere to new and tighter regulations that are meant to provide a basis for global cooperation in combating life-threatening diseases.

The revised health regulations came into effect in June. They recommend countries report potentially dangerous health emergencies to WHO.

The annual health report also urges countries to share viruses to help develop vaccines and to step up domestic efforts to combat disease outbreaks.

That the Indonesian government has resumed the sharing of live viruses with the WHO does not mean the country is already in compliance with the new health regulations.

The regulations demonstrate the need for countries to work together to overcome future health challenges.

It's deplorable if the only reason for stopping the sharing of virus samples was for assurances any pandemic vaccines developed from the samples would be affordable for developing countries, while Indonesia is in bed with a U.S. vaccine maker to produce a human vaccine.

Having a human vaccine ready in case of a pandemic, of course, requires a well thought out plan, but it's a pretty foreign concept for most people here as influenza is not seasonal like in sub-tropical countries. Flu is a year-round illness that can be triggered by various causes.

In a broader sense, however, the sharing of virus samples is meant to ensure that, for now, the virus has not mutated into a form that is easily transmittable from human to human, which could trigger a global influenza pandemic.

Nevertheless, details on whether the virus has mutated remain unclear.

Recent cases, especially those in Bali, show the mortality rate has reached 80 percent, which means the virus is even more lethal than before.

Or perhaps the high mortality rate can simply be blamed on late detection.

So much for the country's revenue from the tourism sector and our image in the eyes of the international community; we have failed to tend our own backyard.

Jakarta, where 22 of the 86 human bird flu deaths nationwide have occurred, has stepped up prevention efforts, including issuing an ordinance that restricts backyard poultry. Yet it is still struggling to enforce the bylaw.

Political will alone is not enough if there is no commitment to implement the regulation. Free-range chickens can still be found in housing complexes and roaming the streets of the capital.

Understandably, government officials always say it's not easy to rid the city of backyard poultry because low and middle-income families depend on the cheap supply of protein -- chicken and eggs -- from their own backyard.

During the fasting month and the upcoming Idul Fitri holiday there will be a surge in demand for chicken, which is cheaper than beef.

The distribution of poultry and how it is sold to the public have not yet been addressed by the government, with the country still relying on traditional distribution and sale methods.

With international aid flooding into the country to help us fight bird flu, the government must be more than ready to cover the tangible losses. It just requires serious measures to be taken against backyard poultry and a restructuring of the poultry industry.

We cannot wait for another outbreak or more human fatalities. Keep the virus in chicken cages as it was originally a poultry disease.

It matters how we deal with chickens, because the bad news is the threat of a pandemic is still lurking.

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