HURUNGWE Police were on Wednesday summoned to assist health officials in Dete 75 kilometres northeast of Karoi farming town after apostolic sect members defied the governments call to have all children immunised against measles irrespective of parents religious beliefs, health officials said on Friday.
On Monday the government launched a nationwide measles vaccination campaign following a rise in the incidence of measles since last September to cover almost all of the countrys 62 districts, claiming nearly 400 lives from over 7 000 recorded cases.
Dete, which is under Chief Kazangarare in Mashonaland West provinces Hurungwe district, has a high population of Johanne Marange sect members who believe in spiritual healing and not modern medicine.
There was no immediate response on Monday when the programme was officially launched and for two days villagers, mostly from Johanne Marange sect, did not take heed of the government call to immunise their children, said a nurse, speaking on condition that she is not named. We had to appeal for assistance from the police so that we could immunise the children.
When police from Kazangarare business centre went to Dete and assisted the health officials conduct the immunisation exercise, there was a marked improvement in attendance on the following day, added the sources.
Its unfortunate that most parents of the sect are defying the government call when there is an outbreak of measles in this area where 15 deaths have been recorded in May alone, added another source.
It was alleged that defiant apostles in ward 19, headmen Nyarambi and Muchemwa areas, locked up children in huts to deny them vaccination. Some of the locked up 13 children were seriously sick from measles, forcing neighbours to make a report at the police.
Hurungwe district hospital officials were not immediately available to verify the assertions.
Richard Matesanwa of Maendaenda village said that the apostolic sect members had not been properly informed by their church elders that they were free to have their children immunised.
These parents were not alerted that their leaders had given government officials including Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai assurance that children will be immunised during this years outreach programme. Some are not prepared to go against sect principles that forbid them to do so, said Matesanwa.
Apostolic sect members attended a national stake holders conference on immunisation and vaccination in Harare last week where most leaders agreed that they will allow their members to have their children immunised in the government campaign.
Noah Taguta leader of Johanne Marange assured government officials that his sect will allow members to immunise children.
During the 10-day vaccination campaign which runs from May 24 to June 2, the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare and its partners, plan to immunise 95 per cent of children between the ages of 6 months and 14 years.
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