Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Thanks for all the help
But please keep the soldiers, it will only make things more difficult. Health and aid groups are grateful for any help but well know that a military presence of any kind is met with distrust in West Africa.
Aid agencies have cautiously welcomed the United States’ announcement that it would deliver aid to health workers in West African countries hit by an Ebola outbreak that has killed at least 2,296 people.Even in the face of death, people are wary of what has brought so much misery to the area, the military in any form.
With the deadly virus still raging in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, some see the intervention of the world’s most powerful military as a last resort — and best hope.
But Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) — while applauding the U.S. move — said they don’t want the security detail for health care workers that President Obama pledged on Sunday.
And some experts have expressed concerns that the involvement of American forces adds an unpredictable element to the public health emergency.
“In this particular case, the Ebola emergency is so severe and the logistical challenges are so serious and seem so insurmountable that you have humanitarian actors that are normally very resistant to any kind of military aid asking for the military to get involved,” said Laura Seay, a Colby College assistant professor of government specializing in African issues.
“This is one of those things where you have to be careful what you wish for,” Seay said, adding that it is important that the U.S. military abide by the local governments' protocols.
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