Feature: Afghan parents urge timely response after fresh case of polio detected

The discovery of the latest poliomyelitis case in a mountainous Afghan district has exacerbated concerns among war-weary parents, prompting them to demand a timely response from the government.

"Afghan children are victims of war and conflicts. They are being killed or maimed by explosions and clashes. Now, we are worried that the polio outbreak will add to their miseries," Balqees, a female villager in the eastern Wardak province, told Xinhua on Wednesday.

"I heard that polio is dangerous and could kill or cripple children forever. The government and international aid agencies must take immediate action," said Balqees, a mother of four, who lives in the Jalriz district of Wardak.

The number of polio cases recorded in the mountainous country has risen to eight this year, with a newly confirmed case in the Barmal district of eastern Paktika province, bordering Pakistan, the Afghan Public Health Ministry said earlier this month.

On Monday, the health ministry in partnership with UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO) kicked off a countrywide vaccination campaign against polio.

The house-to-house campaign will cover 9.5 million children under five years old, the ministry said in a statement.

"The campaign runs throughout Afghanistan for four days, from Oct. 17 to 19, with a catch-up day to revisit missed children on Oct. 21," said the statement.

"I hope that the sporadic fighting will not deter the current vaccination process in Jalriz. The insurgents frequently clash with security forces around villages. If there are clashes, the health workers cannot visit all the houses. I hope the children do not miss the campaign course this time," Balqees said.

Some polio cases have also been detected in the restive eastern Kunar and southern Helmand and Kandahar provinces where Taliban militants are active.

"Polio is a crippling disease that cannot be cured but it can be prevented through vaccination. Every child under the age of five in Afghanistan should be vaccinated during each immunization round to ensure they are protected," according to the health ministry statement.

"The health workers and charities should also launch a public awareness campaign. They should encourage parents to allow their children to be vaccinated," Basira, a mother of three, said in Kabul.

"Unfortunately some uneducated people don't believe in any vaccinations, so they don't allow their children to be vaccinated regularly. Some parents believe such immunization has some negative impact on their children," she said.

Afghan Minister of Public Health Ferozuddin Feroz reaffirmed the administration's commitment to seeing all forms of viruses, including polio, being eradicated once and for all, while overcoming the barriers presented by geography and culture.

"Afghanistan is on track to stop the transmission of polio and our focus is now on finding and vaccinating every child missed for any reason. Most of Afghanistan remains polio-free," Feroz was quoted by the ministry's statement as saying.

"Everyone has a role to play in stopping this debilitating disease and ensuring that no more children are paralyzed by polio," he said.

The latest anti-polio drive was carried out by over 65,000 trained health workers. These vaccinators and other frontline health workers they have been chosen because they care about children and their communities, according to the health ministry.

"Parents who do not have their children vaccinated during the campaign days are urged to visit local health centers where their children can be vaccinated against polio," the ministry said.

The ongoing conflicts and insurgency have also had a negative impact on the campaign.

Local officials in the eastern Nangarhar province warned that children in four districts, including Achin, Haska Mina, Nazian and Pacheragam, where the militants of Islamic State (IS) are active, might miss the ongoing anti-polio drive.

"I did not understand the importance of vaccinations in the past and my second son, Mohammad Samim, was hit by the polio virus when he was a child, he is 18 years old now," Abdul Nabi, a father of nine, said

"Samim has a very difficult life and will likely not marry," Nabi said, urging all parents to help the government's efforts in fighting the infectious polio virus. Endit