UN Says Cholera Death Toll - by Nampa-AP-AFP
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HARARE, Zimbabwe - The death toll from Zimbabwe's cholera outbreak has risen sharply, the United Nations said yesterday, reporting 746 deaths and 15 572 cases of the water-borne disease.
Cholera has spread in Zimbabwe because of the country's crumbling health care system and water infrastructure. Last week, Zimbabwe declared a health emergency because of cholera and the collapse of its health services.
The UN humanitarian office in Geneva reported on Tuesday that 589 people had died out of 13 960 cases.
Information minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu claimed the disease was "under control".
"We have enough chemicals to purify the water. We have got enough foreign currency to buy pipes" to mend sanitation lines, Ndlovu added. However, aid agencies have warned about coming rains further spreading cholera in a population already weakened by disease and hunger.
There are also concerns about Zimbabwe's neighbours being affected. South Africa has been caring for scores of Zimbabwean cholera victims, who have crossed the border seeking help. Almost 500 cholera cases have been detected in South Africa, nine of who died.
Also yesterday, Nobel peace laureate Martti Ahtisaari criticised Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, saying the international community failed to meet its obligation to intervene when "something goes terribly wrong, as it has".
He said Mugabe "was the hope of the continent after Zimbabwe was born. How (does) this desire for absolute power make somebody behave the way he has done? I feel very sad about that."
Meanwhile, a group of lawyers marched peacefully through downtown Harare calling for the release of human rights activist Jestina Mukoko.
The lawyers - some dressed in their black gowns - carried placards reading: "Stop abductions now" and calling Mukoko a "woman of peace".
Mukoko, director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project, was allegedly taken from her home a week ago, when activists held nationwide protests against the country's deepening economic and health crises.
Two days later, Zacharia Nkomo - the brother of a lawyer working on Mukoko's case - was taken from his home in southern Zimbabwe, while two of her colleagues were abducted on Monday at their workplace, the groups said.
"This shows the audacity of a regime that is desperate to stay in power, no matter what the cost," said Irene Khan, secretary general of Amnesty International.
"The only way out of this problem is through unified pressure from outside, in particular of African leaders," she added.
The activists were taken "by people suspected to be working on behalf of Zimbabwean authorities," the groups' statement said.
A Zimbabwean court has ordered police to search for Mukoko, her lawyers said. Police have denied holding Mukoko, and Ndlovu on Tuesday denied any state-sponsored abductions.
"When some people are taken by the police for investigations, then their relatives say they have been abducted," Ndlovu told reporters.
The MDC said Gandhi Mudzingwa, a former assistant to opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, was also abducted on Tuesday while 15 other supporters have been reported missing since last month.
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Cholera has spread in Zimbabwe because of the country's crumbling health care system and water infrastructure. Last week, Zimbabwe declared a health emergency because of cholera and the collapse of its health services.
The UN humanitarian office in Geneva reported on Tuesday that 589 people had died out of 13 960 cases.
Information minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu claimed the disease was "under control".
"We have enough chemicals to purify the water. We have got enough foreign currency to buy pipes" to mend sanitation lines, Ndlovu added. However, aid agencies have warned about coming rains further spreading cholera in a population already weakened by disease and hunger.
There are also concerns about Zimbabwe's neighbours being affected. South Africa has been caring for scores of Zimbabwean cholera victims, who have crossed the border seeking help. Almost 500 cholera cases have been detected in South Africa, nine of who died.
Also yesterday, Nobel peace laureate Martti Ahtisaari criticised Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, saying the international community failed to meet its obligation to intervene when "something goes terribly wrong, as it has".
He said Mugabe "was the hope of the continent after Zimbabwe was born. How (does) this desire for absolute power make somebody behave the way he has done? I feel very sad about that."
Meanwhile, a group of lawyers marched peacefully through downtown Harare calling for the release of human rights activist Jestina Mukoko.
The lawyers - some dressed in their black gowns - carried placards reading: "Stop abductions now" and calling Mukoko a "woman of peace".
Mukoko, director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project, was allegedly taken from her home a week ago, when activists held nationwide protests against the country's deepening economic and health crises.
Two days later, Zacharia Nkomo - the brother of a lawyer working on Mukoko's case - was taken from his home in southern Zimbabwe, while two of her colleagues were abducted on Monday at their workplace, the groups said.
"This shows the audacity of a regime that is desperate to stay in power, no matter what the cost," said Irene Khan, secretary general of Amnesty International.
"The only way out of this problem is through unified pressure from outside, in particular of African leaders," she added.
The activists were taken "by people suspected to be working on behalf of Zimbabwean authorities," the groups' statement said.
A Zimbabwean court has ordered police to search for Mukoko, her lawyers said. Police have denied holding Mukoko, and Ndlovu on Tuesday denied any state-sponsored abductions.
"When some people are taken by the police for investigations, then their relatives say they have been abducted," Ndlovu told reporters.
The MDC said Gandhi Mudzingwa, a former assistant to opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, was also abducted on Tuesday while 15 other supporters have been reported missing since last month.
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