Tangerang combats bird flu using posters, stickers in public areas

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 05/16/2008 12:46 PM  |  City

The Tangerang administration and the National Committee for Avian Influenza Control (Komnas FBPI) on Thursday launched a public awareness campaign to stop the spread of bird flu in the regency.

The head of Tangerang regency's health department, Hani Herianto, said the campaign would include advice on how to stop the spread of the bird flu virus.

"The messages will be made available in form of banners, posters and stickers that will be placed in strategic public areas including poultry markets, schools, mosques, churches, shops and public transportation," Hani said.

She said the public awareness campaign would also include training for the media.

According to data from Komnas FBPI, Indonesia has the highest number of bird flu cases in the world, with Tangerang being the hardest hit area with 14 cases. It said since June 2005, the virus has infected 133 Indonesians, with 108 deaths.

The central government declared Tangerang prone to bird flu following the death of Iwan Siswara, an official at the Supreme Audit Agency, and his two young daughters in July 2005.

The bird flu committee also said that since 2003, more than 12 million domesticated birds in Indonesia -- mostly in backyard farms -- had died from bird flu, causing billions of rupiah in financial losses to the poultry industry.

Komnas FBPI spokesman Memed Zoelkarnain Hassan said most of the victims who had died from bird flu did not live near big farms, but in urban areas where chickens roamed free.

"Big poultry owners appear to be more concerned in introducing protective measures because of the financial implications to their industry, but backyard poultry farmers have not responded to the dangers," he said in a press release made available Thursday.

Scientists have warned that Indonesia, which has millions of backyard chickens and limited medical facilities, is a potential hot spot that could spark a global bird flu pandemic.

It is feared a pandemic could occur if the virus mutated so it could be easily transferred between humans. If this happens, it could claim millions of lives around the world.

Mira Kartawijaya from OnTrackMedia Indonesia, a non-governmental organization involved in the public awareness campaign, said another important step for curbing the spread of bird flu was to educate people in the worst-hit areas about how they could change their behavior to protect themselves and their families from contracting the virus.

"We are urging the public to play their part by encouraging neighbors not to let their birds loose in the community and passing on the messages they learn to each other," she said.

The latest suspected bird flu victims in Indonesia were Istiqomah, a 16-year-old girl from Jakarta, and her brother Ahmad Rizki. Istiqomah died on May 14, 10 days after Ahmad.

One of their family members, Alamsyah, 24, is still being treated at Persahabatan Hospital in East Jakarta for bird flu-like symptoms.

Their deaths have not been included in the official data, however, because the government needs time to confirm suspected bird flu cases. (uwi)

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