The heading above is from the New York Times. It further says: the front-line heroes of Pakistan’s war on polio are its volunteers: young women who tread fearlessly from door to door, in slums and highland villages, administering precious drops of vaccine to children in places where their immunization campaign is often viewed with suspicion.
 |
| These beautifully done hina colored toe-nails have brought tears....I call the killings: savagery! |
The World Health Organization and Unicef ordered their staff members off the streets, while government officials reported that some polio volunteers — especially women — were afraid to show up for work. After militants stalked and killed eight of them over the course of a three-day, nationwide vaccination drive.
 |
| A very beautiful little girl is showing her finger with a mark that signifies she has been vaccinated - even these young girls are targets! |
The killings started in the port city of Karachi on Monday, the first day of a vaccination drive aimed at the worst affected areas, with the shooting of a male health worker. On Tuesday four female polio workers were killed, all gunned down by men on motorcycles. The hit jobs then moved to Peshawar, The first victim there was one of two sisters who had volunteered as polio vaccinators. Men on motorcycles shadowed them as they walked from house to house. Once the sisters entered a quiet street, the gunmen opened fire. One of the sisters, Farzana, died instantly; the other was uninjured. One of the vilunteers was a 17 years old high school girl - shot in Peshawar.
Resistance is particularly strong all over Pakistan, where there has been a severe backlash against immunization for polio and other diseases since the CIA used a Pakistani doctor, Shakil Afridi, to set up a fake vaccination program as the agency closed in on the al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden in his hiding place in the town of Abbottabad, in the north-western province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, last year.
Female polio workers here make for easy targets. They wear no uniform but are readily recognizable, with clipboards and refrigerated vaccine boxes, walking door to door. They work in pairs — including at least one woman — and are paid just over $2.50 a day. Most days one team can vaccinate 150 to 200 children.
All these women, who volunteered, despite of having real and imminent danger - chose to work in some of the most hazardous of Pakistani areas. Hats off to them, they are the bravest of all women, risking their lives.
More read here.
Posts
sarahinsouthkorea
