As the levees break again ...
The decision to go on with the elections as planned for June by the Burundi President has resulted in an ongoing humanitarian crisis.
About 20 or more people have been said to have been lost to street violence with over 400 having sustained injuries of varying severity.
Over 100000 people have escaped into neighboring countries for fear of more violence.
It's been a traumatic experience for these helpless people who have been forced to leave all that they have worked for and own for fear of loosing the ultimate : their lives.
There have been reports of armed men and thugs exploiting some of these people as they flee. These exploitations have been in different forms : sexual and monetary to say the least.
Sadly over 3000 of the refugees have been infected by the cholera outbreak as they wait on the shores of Lake Tanganyika to be transported into Kigoli Tanzania.
31 lives have been lost to this epidemic and more deaths may occur if the living conditions of these people waiting to be evacuated is not improved.
As at Friday 300 to 400 new cases were said to be reported daily at this camp. ( UNHCR)
Between 1000 to 2000 people are transported daily by ferries and ships into Tanzania.
Most of the people camped are women and children.
Could all these have been avoided, One would ask?
Should any of these be happening at all?
In my opinion, I feel this could have been very well avoided if our leaders had thought of the consequences and sought for dialogue with the people instead of force.
Is the leadership of one man worth the blood of many?
I often wonder if the world would be a better place for everyone if we all considered the resultant effects of our actions and reactions before carrying them out.
Perhaps more violence, death, humanitarian crisis, wars and epidemics could be avoided.
Many thanks to the UNHCR for the roles they have played in providing a safe harbor and promptly moving the people to safety.
Vaccinations, head counts and care of the sick and the vulnerable (the elderly, young children and pregnant women) have been taken care of by them.
The WHO and the UN however could have been more disaster prepared and ready to deploy more health professionals to the scene and to move the people more quickly away from unsafe and unsanitary living conditions. That could have helped to prevent the cholera epidemic and the ensuing deaths.
The provision of food, blankets, tents, temporary toilets, insecticide treated nets and sleeping bags for the people waiting to board the ferries at Kagunga could have helped the situation more.
The Ministries of Health and appropriate ruling bodies in the neighboring countries could have been more proactive in protecting their citizens when the influx began.
2 Tanzanians were said to have been lost to the cholera epidemic.
There is a lot to learn from the Ebola epidemic. Some of those lessons could be used here to reduce the impact of this humanitarian crisis.
We do not always have to wait for the UN and the WHO before taking appropriate actions.
The International community should be more deliberate in their attempt to help restore peace to the nation.
Sanctions may need to be placed and penalties may be put in place for governments that refuse to follow constitutions and most importantly the path of peace.
Needless to say, If the situation in Burundi continues unabated, more avoidable deaths from violence and epidemics may occur.
The Socio economic situation of the people of this ailing nation will further plummet, which will further plunge the nation into poverty.
Let's not forget that Burundi is just recuperating from a decade of war.
More violence will further traumatize the people and may result in a cycle of creating citizens that resort more to violence in resolving issues.
This ongoing situation is pathetic for the already traumatized citizens of a struggling post war economy.
Let's stem the tide of violence in our communities. It's not all about you ........ or me .......
Let's make reasonable decisions with our neighbors in mind.
#forabetterworld
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