Month: August 2021

Authorities in West Africa have confirmed the region’s first known case of Marburg virus after at least one person in Guinea died of the hemorrhagic fever disease, the World Health Organization said Monday.

Health officials said they were trying to track down everyone who might have come into contact with the patient, who had sought medical treatment in Gueckedou.

The case was reported in the same part of Guinea where the 2014-2016 Ebola epidemic started and ultimately killed at least 11,325 people. A much smaller outbreak of Ebola earlier this year also hit the same area near Guinea’s borders with Sierra Leone and Liberia, leaving 12 dead.

The Marburg virus belongs to the same family as Ebola, and previously outbreaks have erupted elsewhere across Africa in Angola, Congo, Kenya, South Africa and Uganda.

The new West African case was confirmed by a laboratory in Guinea and again by the Institut Pasteur in nearby Senegal, according to WHO.

“The potential for the Marburg virus to spread far and wide means we need to stop it in its tracks,” said Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO’s regional director for Africa. “We are working with the health authorities to implement a swift response that builds on Guinea’s past experience and expertise in managing Ebola, which is transmitted in a similar way.”

Marburg outbreaks start when an infected animal, such as a monkey or a fruit bat, passes the virus to a human. The virus then spreads from human to human by contact with an infected person’s body fluids.

Marburg symptoms include high fever and muscle pains, and some patients later bleed through body openings such as the eyes and ears. There is no approved drug or vaccine for Marburg, but rehydration and other supportive care can improve a patient’s chances of survival.

Case fatality rates have been as high as 88% in previous outbreaks, but WHO said the figure has varied based on the strain and how cases were managed.

Source: Voice of America

Food aid from the United Nations only reached half of its intended recipients in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, the World Food Program (WFP) said Monday.

WFP said it delivered food to a million people in war-torn Tigray in June and July, but that shortages of fuel and telecommunications mean another million people slated to receive assistance have been out of reach.

The United Nations has estimated that 5.2 million people – a shocking 90% of the population of Tigray – is in need of food assistance.

“People in Tigray are suffering due to lack of humanitarian support over the past month – we need to reach them now before they fall into famine. WFP is calling for all parties to agree to a ceasefire and guarantee an unimpeded flow of humanitarian supplies into Tigray, so that we can deliver lifesaving food and other emergency supplies safely before it’s too late,” said Michael Dunford, WFP’s Corporate Response Director for Tigray.

The war erupted in Ethiopia last November between the federal government in Ethiopia and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed accused Tigrayan troops of attacking federal military camps.

The war in Ethiopia has caused a devastating humanitarian crisis mostly in the Tigray region.

Tens of thousands of Tigray residents have fled to neighboring Sudan since the conflict began.

Source: Voice of America

Legal experts and rights campaigners here are criticizing the group Women Lawyers Association of Malawi, or WLA, for claiming thousands of dollars in legal fees after representing 18 women in a rape case involving police. The critics say the association is trying to cash in after saying it was working pro bono. Representatives of the WLA say their claim is normal.

At issue is the $313,000 the WLA claimed or demanded as compensation for representing the 18 women, who accused police of rape during post-election protests in 2019. The plaintiffs, who will share a $148,000 award, said 17 police officers sexually assaulted them in retaliation after protesters stoned a police officer to death in the capital, Lilongwe.

Thabo Chakaka-Nyirenda, a legal expert based in Lilongwe, says the fees appear immoral.

“In view of the background of the case, Women Lawyers Association got funding from donors; U.N. and Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa – almost $200,000. And I think to get those costs again, that would amount to just enrichment, also maybe we could say double-dipping in that case,” Chakaka-Nyirenda.

Peter Dimba, chairperson of the legal affairs committee in parliament, says the claim for legal fees is not justified considering that the association was fully sponsored by donors in handling the case.

“And what is more concerning is that here is a case where you are trying to deal with injustices that were perpetrated on women and women volunteer themselves to help them on a pro bono basis, and then, use the same case to exploit fellow women… This is a case of exploitation. You cannot represent somebody and charge [an] amount of legal fees when the actual victims have gotten much less,” Dimba said.

The 18 victims received compensation ranging from $5,000 to $12,000 each.

A beneficiary who did not want to be named told VOA the compensation was too low.

In a statement issued Saturday, Malawi’s Human Rights Commission asked the association to clarify what it meant when it said it was representing the victims pro bono. Kate Kujaliwa, the spokesperson for the commission, says the public want to know.

“Basically, what we are saying is: let them bring forth the information and it should be clear; justification and clarification if any; answer the question that the public is asking. The public is demanding how and why this has come to be,” Kujaliwa said.

VOA attempted to speak with representatives of the association Sunday but no one there answered the phone.

In a statement signed by its president, Immaculate Maluza, Saturday, the lawyers said their claim for legal fees was appropriate because they took into account the time spent working on the case.

Lawmaker Dimba told VOA that parliament’s legal committee has pledged to consult the courts to review the fees – a move the Malawi Law Society has also supported.

Source: Voice of America