Groups Warn of Health Needs in Burma
10 April 2012
This is the VOA Special English Health Report.
In the past year, Burma has opened its political system and reached cease-fire agreements with some ethnic militias. The government has also eased media restrictions. But many aid groups say their jobs have not gotten any easier.
Health workers are warning about the spread of a form of drug-resistant malaria. The malaria is resistant to treatment with artemisinin. It was first seen several years ago in Cambodia.
Frank Smithuis started a group called Medical Action Myanmar. He says even with the recent political openings, aid organizations still find it difficult to gain access to areas most in need of aid. This is true, he says, especially in areas torn by many years of conflict along Burma's eastern border.
A file photo of Burmese refugees.
FRANK SMITHUIS: "There are now very good opportunities because of the cease-fire agreements with the Karen and the Mon. Larger areas should now be open for access to a joint activity to stop this artemisinin resistance spread. However that has not happened yet and we definitely need to have more openness and more activity and more international donor money. And that’s very, very important."
In the past, many nongovernmental organizations simply worked without official approval. Lower-level government officials largely ignored organizations that did not follow the rules.
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