Polio Workers In Pakistan Paying High Price For Protecting Children

The Nation: Campaign Against Polio
Editorial Board

“Being a polio worker in Pakistan has to be one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. Since 2012, militants opposed to the vaccination campaign have killed 68 polio workers and policemen tasked with protecting them. … An obvious solution to this would be to provide enhanced security to vaccination teams, but it is easier said than done. In Karachi, for example, the police force is far too small to deal with the situation. … [P]olio workers remain vulnerable to violence. Most of them are poor individuals, who cannot afford to turn down a job even though it pays very little. But the price they end up paying for doing the good work of securing children against a paralyzing infection is far too high” (2/3).

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