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Posted on 04/26/2003 12:56:22 PM PDT by Chipata

The Threat Posed by SARS is Unprecedented

By:JASBANT SINGH, Associated Press Writer April 26, 2003

Asian health ministers agree measures to stop 'unprecedented threat' of SARS

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Asian health ministers agreed Saturday on measures to slow the spread of SARS, including more screening at international departure points, a bar on travelers showing symptoms of the virus and a requirement for health declaration forms for visitors from affected countries.

"The threat posed by SARS is unprecedented," said the regional director of the World Health Organization, Shigeru Omi. "The virus has already demonstrated its explosive power to cause sudden outbreaks in a large number of countries. Tourism has almost disappeared. Normal life has been seriously disrupted."

"We must be absolutely relentless in our search for every possible SARS case. We must use every weapon at our disposal," Omi told the health ministers and senior officials from Southeast Asia, China, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea.

Omi said Saturday's meeting in Kuala Lumpur and a Southeast Asian leaders' summit in Thailand next week could "determine the future course" of how nations handle severe acute respiratory syndrome, which has killed at least 293 people and infected more than 4,600 worldwide.

The ministers agreed on a plan to boost screening at international departure points, bar travelers with SARS symptoms, and require health declaration forms for visitors from affected countries.

In a joint declaration, they stressed that their countries "could tackle the challenges posed by this deadly virus only by strengthening our collective efforts regionally as well as internationally."

Malaysian Health Minister Chua Jui Meng said Asians' ability to easily travel worldwide was "creating an alarming potential" for the outbreak to widen further.

"Should SARS continue to spread, the global economic consequences could be great in a closely interconnected and interdependent world," Chua said.

Chua said the measures approved by the ministers would be presented to national leaders at their summit in Bangkok before formal implementation.

China's Deputy Health Minister Huang Jiefu said Saturday's meeting underscored the need for Asian countries to be "united together as a team to fight the epidemic."

SARS is believed to have originated in southern China in November. Cases have been reported in 26 countries and territories.

The health ministers' meeting was called on short notice by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which consists of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Only Vietnam did not participate in Saturday's discussions, which were also attended by Canadian observers.

The ministers also agreed that Southeast Asian countries should consider jointly setting up a disease control center, which Malaysia has said could help fight new disease outbreaks.

Indonesia's Health Minister Achmad Suyudi said Asia was demonstrating great resolve in joining hands to combat SARS.

"There are no sticking points, no sensitive areas as far as SARS is concerned," Suyudi said. "Everything is open to discussion."

©Indiana Printing & Publishing Co. 2003

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