Page 11 - ARUBA TODAY

A11
WORLD NEWS Thursday 18 July 2019

Ebola outbreak in Congo declared a global health emergency

By MARIA CHENG eral fake names to con-
JAMEY KEATEN ceal his identity on his way
GENEVA (AP) — The deadly to the city, Congolese offi-
Ebola outbreak in Congo cials said. WHO on Tuesday
is now an international said the man had died and
health emergency, the health workers were scram-
World Health Organization bling to trace dozens of his
announced on Wednes- contacts, including those
day after the virus spread who had traveled on the
this week to a city of two same bus.
million people . There was no immediate
A WHO expert committee reaction to WHO's emer-
had declined on three pre- gency declaration from
vious occasions to advise Congo's health ministry,
the United Nations health which had lobbied against
agency to make the dec- it.
laration for this outbreak, "Calling for a (global emer-
which other experts say has gency) to raise funds while
long met the conditions. ignoring the negative con-
More than 1,600 people sequences for (Congo) is
have died since August in reckless," the ministry tweet-
the second deadliest Ebola ed following an editorial by
outbreak in history, which In this photograph taken Sunday July 14, 2019, an Ebola victim is put to rest at the Muslim cem- Britain's secretary of state
is unfolding in a region de- etery in Beni, Congo DRC. for international develop-
scribed as a war zone. Associated Press ment in favor of a decla-
This week the first Ebola ration. Rory Stewart an-
case was confirmed in ration in history. Previous town University Law Center, outbreak, which it repeat- nounced earlier this week
Goma, a major regional emergencies were de- said Wednesday's declara- edly declined to declare a that Britain would donate
crossroads in northeastern clared for the devastating tion was long overdue. global emergency until the up to another $63 million
Congo on the Rwandan 2014-16 Ebola outbreak "This essentially serves as virus was spreading explo- for the Ebola response and
border with an internation- in West Africa that killed a call to the international sively in three countries and called for other countries,
al airport. Health experts more than 11,000 people, community that they have nearly 1,000 people were especially Francophone
have feared this scenario the emergence of Zika in to step up appropriate fi- dead. Internal documents ones, to increase their sup-
for months. the Americas, the swine flu nancial and technical sup- later showed WHO held off port.
A declaration of a global pandemic and polio eradi- port," she said but warned partly out of fear a dec- At a U.N. meeting on Ebo-
health emergency often cation. that countries should be laration would anger the la in Geneva on Tuesday,
brings greater international WHO defines a global wary of imposing travel or countries involved and hurt Congo's health minister,
attention and aid, along emergency as an "ex- trade restrictions. their economies. Dr. Oly Ilunga, said the out-
with concerns that nervous traordinary event" which "Those restrictions would The current outbreak is break was "not a humani-
governments might overre- constitutes a risk to other actually restrict the flow spreading in a turbulent tarian crisis" and that the risk
act with border closures. countries and requires a of goods and health care Congo border region where of Ebola spreading to other
While the risk of regional coordinated international workers into affected dozens of rebel groups are cities or regions in Congo
spread remains high the risk response. Last month this countries so they are coun- active and where Ebola remained the same.
outside the region remains outbreak spilled across ter-productive," she said. had not been experienced "Ebola is not rocket science,
low, WHO chief Tedros Ad- the border for the first time Future emergency decla- before. Efforts to contain it's very simple," he said.
hanom Ghebreyesus said when a family brought the rations might be perceived the virus have been hurt WHO has long called the
after the announcement in virus into Uganda after at- as punishment and "might by mistrust by wary locals regional Ebola risk "very
Geneva. "The (international tending the burial in Con- result in other countries not that has prompted deadly high."
emergency) should not be go of an infected relative. reporting outbreaks in the attacks on health work- Earlier this week, Ugandan
used to stigmatize or pe- Even then, the expert com- future, which puts us all at ers. Some infected people health officials said a Con-
nalize the very people who mittee advised against a greater risk." have deliberately evaded golese fish trader had trav-
are most in need of our declaration. WHO had been heavily health authorities. eled to Uganda while sick
help," he said. Alexandra Phelan, a global criticized for its sluggish re- The pastor who brought and vomited several times
This is the fifth such decla- health expert at George- sponse to the West Africa Ebola to Goma used sev- at a local market. q