Why Cholera?

(Photo source: http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2008/12/11/world/20081212CHOLERA_index.html?ref=world)
According to the WHO the reasons for the cholera outbreak are: lack of clean drinking water and sanitation, weak health services, and health staff strike, mainly by nurses. Health staff are unable to obtain salaries from banks due to the acute shortage of banknotes, making it too burdensome and expensive to travel to work.

The MSF reports: The problems are long-term. The water station does not have the parts to properly repair its pumps. Even if it did, it depends on electricity to pump water from the tower to the city. Electricity depends on a coal mine that has not been paid in over a year and can no longer supply coal. There is no fuel to run the garbage trucks; there is no money to pay salaries for people to collect the garbage. There is no equipment, or supplies, to fix the sewage system, nor money to pay personnel to do it. There are no quick solutions.

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It is evident that there are very serious problems facing Zimbabwe but it cannot be said that they have simply been caused by the weaknesses of the government of Zimbabwe. Like many other countries, Zimbabwe has attempted to chart its own independent course and escape from the legacy of British colonial rule since gaining independence through armed struggle in 1980. But it has been thwarted in particular by the hostile actions of the governments of Britain and the US, which have meddled in Zimbabwe’s internal affairs and refused to honour their legal responsibilities as required by the Lancaster House agreement of 1979, which brought to an end the armed liberation struggle.


The deterioration of Zimbabwe’s economy, which is still dominated by Anglo-American monopolies, has itself been precipitated by the hostile actions of the World Bank and IMF encouraged by Britain and the US, as well as by economic sanctions especially those imposed by the US under so-called Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act.
But the British and US governments and their allies have also continued to meddle in the internal affairs of Zimbabwe, especially in its elections and political life, directly financing an opposition movement to its government through the Westminster Foundation, the Zimbabwe Democracy Trust and other similar agencies.

In these difficult circumstances, there have been attempts by the African Union and the Southern African Development Community to find a way forward. Discussions were taking place between all the major political parties until recently when the main opposition party, the MDC suddenly withdrew, leading to a renewed political impasse and the conditions were created for Britain, the US and their allies to launch their new offensive.

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Zimbabwe declares national health emergency
4 Dec 2008, 1950 hrs IST, AP


HARARE, Zimbabwe: Zimbabwe has declared a national emergency over a cholera epidemic and the collapse of its health care system, and is seeking more help to pay for food and drugs, the state-run newspaper said on Thursday.

"Our central hospitals are literally not functioning," minister of health David Parirenyatwa said on Wednesday at a meeting of government and international aid officials, according to The Herald newspaper.

The failure of the health care system is one of the most devastating effects of an economic collapse that has left Zimbabweans struggling to eat and find clean drinking water. Little help is coming from the government, which has been paralyzed since disputed March elections as President Robert Mugabe and the opposition wrangle over a power-sharing deal.

The United Nations said the cholera, blamed on lack of water treatment and broken sewage pipes, has killed more than 500 people across the country since August.

Matthew Cochrane, regional spokesman for the international federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said on Thursday that Zimbabwe was "absolutely" facing a cholera epidemic, and said he hoped the government's declaration of an emergency would result in international aid agencies and donors stepping up their response.

"This is about supporting the people of Zimbabwe," Cochrane said, adding that aid should include water treatment plants and more medical staff. He said the costs could climb into tens of millions of dollars.

The international Red Cross shipped in more supplies Wednesday to fight cholera in Zimbabwe.

The health minister declared the state of emergency at Wednesday's meeting, and appealed for money to pay for food, drugs, hospital equipment and salaries for doctors and nurses.

"Our staff is demotivated and we need your support to ensure that they start coming to work and our health system is revived,'' he was quoted as saying.

High levels of cholera are common in the region, but Cochrane, of the Red Cross, said it was hitting a population in Zimbabwe already weakened by hunger and poverty. The toll could be much higher than the official figures, he said, as many Zimbabweans, particularly in rural areas, were not seeking medical treatment and their deaths were not being recorded.

Cochrane said Red Cross experts were in the countryside on Thursday assessing the crisis.

Without help, the situation could get much worse. Walter Mzembi, the deputy water minister who also attended Wednesday's meeting, said the ministry has only enough chemicals to treat water nationally for 12 more weeks.

UN agencies, embassies and aid groups at the meeting pledged to help, The Herald said.

The European Commission said it would provide more than $12 million for drugs and clean water, and the International Red Cross said it would release more funds to help deal with cholera.

"We need to pool our resources together and see how best we can respond to this emergency," Agostinho Zacarias, the UN development program director in Zimbabwe, was quoted as saying.

Zimbabwe has the world's highest inflation, and Zimbabweans face daily shortages of food and other basics.

Even cash is in short supply. A new 100 million Zimbabwean dollar note went into circulation on Thursday in an attempt to ease the cash crunch. Also Thursday, the amount of cash an individual can withdraw was increased to ZW$100 million a week, enough to buy about 85 pints (40 liters) of clean water. The new bills and withdrawal limits meant long lines at banks Thursday.

In neighbouring South Africa, where increasing numbers of Zimbabweans are seeking cholera treatment, President Kgalema Motlanthe planned a Cabinet meeting to consider ways to work with other countries in the region, donor organizations and aid groups to address the urgent need for food and other humanitarian needs, government spokesman Themba Maseko said on Thursday.