Congratulations to the Health Ministry of Malaysia for finally admitting to the number of "suspected" cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) in the country. That arguably makes the Malaysian government second only to the Chinese government in expertise in the matter of media secrecy.
This is not the first time either. The death of UPM students due to meningitis in 2002 was initially covered up, as DAP chairperson Lim Kit Siang said .
It was not until the ministries of health and education were 'outed' by malaysiakini , that they finally did something about it.
This is a violation of our human right to information without which our lives are potentially at risk! To purposely play down the incidence of Sars in newspapers is to deliberately compromise the well-being of all Malaysians.
The public needs to know the truth. We demand to be educated in all aspects of the disease i.e. the extent of the epidemic, ways to prevent its spread, our civic responsibility when travelling to the hospital for check-ups, etc. Ignorance will only aggravate the situation.
Another aspect of the handling of the issue irks me greatly. According to yesterdays malaysiakini report, Chua details Sars surveillance measures , Health Minister Chua Jui Meng quoted the ministry's director-general Dr Mohamad Taha Arif as having said "there were no probable cases in Malaysia. This did not mean that there were no suspected cases"
So the ministry, and Mr Chua in particular, hitherto had no positive identification of the illness that has infected many and possibly more Malaysians. This is due to either one of two things: a ministry that is in denial; or worse still, a ministry that is not capable. So which is it?
We must not forget too that the 'advisory' to English-language newspapers to "adjust" their reports relating to SARS, was signed by Abdul Rahim Mohd Radzi on behalf of the ministry's secretary-general Aseh Che Mat ( Gov't orders press not to report SARS deaths ).
We, the rakyat, will hold the government responsible for its actions.
