Poultry smugglers in Bali are putting peoples lives at risk by importing chickens that may be infected with bird flu, an official said on Wednesday. Its frustrating to have to repeat this to these people. They only care about profits and give no thought to the environment and health issues, said Dewa Made Ngurah, the head of the animal husbandry, marine and fisheries agency in the provincial capital, Denpasar.
Ngurah said that a 2005 bylaw stipulated that the unregulated flow of poultry in and out of the province was prohibited. Poultry is still successfully smuggled in, however, largely because effective patrols are too costly to operate, he said. Those caught face hefty fines and even jail sentences. Following a suspected case of avian influenza in Badung district on the resort island, local authorities on Wednesday conducted a drive to disinfect live poultry markets in nearby Denpasar to stop the spread of the virus.
Nguarh called the drive a precautionary measure. We dont want to take any risks when it comes to bird flu, he said.
The agency sprayed disinfectant in Satrio and Sanglah markets, the two busiest poultry trading areas in Denpasar, Ngurah said, adding that the local administration had earmarked Rp 122 million ($10,370) for disinfectant and an additional Rp 83 million to treat suspected victims. Ngurah also said that the agency would more tightly supervise the transportation of poultry in border areas to stem smuggling. To step up bird flu prevention measures, he said the agency had urged local owners of chicken farms and slaughter houses to spray disinfectant on their own.
We can help by providing the disinfectant, but it would be much more efficient if poultry owners would spray the farm themselves, Ngurah said.
After random testing last week in Badung showed one in every five birds to carry the H5N1 virus, authorities culled 133 chickens from Jagapati Abiansemal village. Ngurah said his agency was investigating to find out whether the infected poultry had been from local stock or smuggled in from another province.
A small outbreak of the virus struck the district in 2007, killing two residents.
Globally, Indonesia remains the country hardest-hit by the virus, with 113 human deaths resulting from 139 cases as of Jan. 19, according to the World Health Organization. The countrys failure to rein in the disease ” which is endemic among poultry in the vast majority of the nations 33 provinces ” has prompted critics to warn that a global pandemic could originate here.
source : http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/national/article/9501.html
