ADELAIDE, 22 APRIL 2019 (PACIFIC SCOOP) – The outbreak of typhoid among refugees on Manus underscores the case for all to be removed from Manus and Nauru say advocates.
The outbreak of Typhoid among refugees on Manus underscores the case for all to be removed from Manus and Nauru say advocates.
Refugees have provided evidence of the outbreak to Facebook.
Anthea Falkenberg of Adelaide Vigil for Manus and Nauru (as well as various other groups) who has visited Manus eight times, today said:
“Typhoid can be avoided by hygiene and vaccination.
“The $33 vaccine Boostrix is highly effective and last ten years.
“Once again, it is clear that neither the Department of Home Affairs nor their contractors have succeeded in delivering the most basic of services.
An outbreak such as this will only occur in conditions of prolonged squalor and neglect.
Immunity among refugees is compromised by poor nutrition across a prolonged period. At times food made available to refugees has in the past even contained teeth. Very rarely does it contain fruit and vegetables.
There is also evidence to show that people forced to live offshore have also been endangered by serious violence, severe malaria, dengue fever, Hepatitis A, mis-prescribed combinations of anti-depressant medication, shocking housing, poor safety and inadequate food rations.
