Thursday, September 22, 2005

Indian Pharmas To Calm Indonesia

Effect Measure writes about Indonesia's panic about bird flu.

The Indonesian health authorities seem scared and close to panic, even as they reassure everyone not to panic.

CDC sent a five-person team that arrived on Sunday on a "fact finding mission" and Reuters reports that other international experts are converging on Jakarta.

"Definitely the whole international community is very much present," [WHO representative George] Petersen told Reuters in a telephone interview.The WHO was also working with the government to source new stocks of the anti-viral drug Tamiflu from India to bolster local stocks, he said."It's not very much, it's rather puny. They definitely need some more," Petersen said, adding that stocks being rushed from India were less than 1,000 doses. (Reuters)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

An Indian role is clearly warranted. Indian foreign policy, its pharmaceutical industry and an enhanced humanitarian profile calls for a more visible Indian response to the impending public health crisis in Indonesia.

Both Sumatra and the Andaman and Nicobar islands are close to the strategic straits of Malacca. Humanitarian support should be contextualized in broader foreign policy terms. The precedent already exists. India helped provide relief to Indonesia in the aftermath of the December 2004 tsunami!

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