Zimbabwe cholera deaths hit 565, health workers protest
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Doctors and nurses held a similar protest on November 18. (REUTERS: Philimon Bulawayo )
Police in Zimbabwe have broken up a march by nurses and doctors in the capital, Harare, angered at the worsening cholera outbreak.
The death toll from cholera rose to 565 on Wednesday (local time), with 12,546 cases of the acute intestinal disease reported nationwide, the United Nations said.
Witnesses at the march say officers used batons to disperse and beat up the small band of about 20 health workers.
Harare is the worst-affected area with 177 deaths and 6,448 suspected cases, more than half the total number of cases nationwide, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a statement.
Cholera is the latest challenge to hit the poverty-wracked southern African nation that is already struggling with political instability and rampant hyperinflation.
The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) announced emergency measures on Tuesday to increase health services, provide nutritional supplements and widen access to safe water in Zimbabwe.
Its effort will include buying essential medicines for 70 per cent of the Zimbabwe's population of 11 million, immunisation for 1.5 million children and emergency support and protection for 250,000 orphans and vulnerable children.
"Schools and hospitals are closing, while teachers, nurses and doctors are not reporting for duty," said Roeland Monasch, UNICEF's acting country representative from Zimbabwe.
"It is our top priority to ensure that Zimbabwe children get vital life saving interventions at this critical time."
On November 18 doctors and nurses held a similar rally in the capital because of the growing threat of cholera.
Cholera is caused by food or water tainted with vibrio cholera bacteria, the World Health Organisation says.
With a short incubation period, it brings on diarrhoea that can fast lead to severe dehydration and death.
Trade unionists who staged a protest against limits on cash withdrawals from banks were also beaten by security forces in central Harare.
Soldiers looting
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe's military authorities are investigating a looting spree carried out by "unruly" soldiers in Harare on Monday (local time) and culprits will be punished, the defence minister said.
"During the last five days, Harare experienced disturbances by a few unruly elements from the defence forces," Sydney Sekeramayi told a news conference late on Tuesday.
"As a result, a number of properties were damaged, innocent people injured, money and property stolen," he added.
"Measures are being taken that this will not happen again. These incidents are being investigated and those culpable would be brought to book," he said.
The soldiers were accused of looting downtown shops in Harare and beating foreign currency dealers, but some residents fear the country has now reached a dangerous turning point in its crisis.
Several shops were looted and witnesses accused soldiers of hauling off goods.
State-run The Herald newspaper and The Star newspaper in Johannesburg on Wednesday (local time) showed pictures of some uniformed soldiers apparently looting shops and some running away with their loot.
Police were called to break up the riot, which set nerves on edge in a city struggling to survive after water supplies were cut Sunday (local time), in a bid to fight a cholera epidemic.
- BBC/AFP
