Violence, mistrust derail anti-polio drive in Pakistan

Islamabad, April 18 (IANS) The fight against polio in Pakistan is on a path to derail, and it is not only due to the stubborn virus but also violent and persistent campaigns against those who are actively trying to eradicate this virus, according to a latest media report.

According to a report published in Pakistan’s leading newspaper, Dawn, police escorts were killed, and polio workers were abducted in recent attacks in KP’s Hangu and Bannu, besides parts of Balochistan.

The attacks were in coordination with the immunisation drive being conducted nationwide, to administer the drops to millions of children, thousands of administrative workers fanned out through the country.

The report said that these campaigns were targeted by militants, often branding them as intelligence fronts or foreign plots. These campaigns made progress unevenly due to vaccine refusal and disruption campaigns. With each attack compounding the challenge, entire pockets are left unprotected as vaccinators withdraw.

These setbacks are visible in data, as Pakistan is one of the two countries where polio is still endemic. In recent years, cases have fallen to single digits, but periodic spikes in cases are driven by missed children, and these small gaps can allow the virus to resurface after circulating, said the report.

The report further added that though protection for front-line workers is non-negotiable, the state’s response cannot be limited to security alone. It also mentioned that rebuilding trust is a more durable solution, which requires engagement with local communities in a meaningful way, including engagement with religious leaders, mosques and clerics who can influence at the grassroots level.

Earlier on April 13, a police constable was killed, and four others were injured after a law enforcement party heading to provide security for polio teams in the Hangu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The incident happened in Thall tehsil of Hangu on the first day of the vaccination campaign scheduled for April 13-19. In a statement, the Hangu District police said that unidentified assailants opened fire on a police party, killing a police personnel and injuring four others, Pakistan’s leading daily Dawn reported.

In February, a police personnel was killed when unidentified assailants opened fire on a police vaccination team in Chaman district of Pakistan’s Balochistan.

In a similar incident in February, polio teams were attacked in different areas of Pakistan’s Lahore as parents did not allow them to administer polio drops to their children.

–IANS

sk/sd/