By SOPHENG CHEANG
Associated Press
Cambodia's prime minister called Wednesday for an urgent meeting of Southeast Asian leaders to discuss how the region that suffered through bird flu and SARS can keep away swine flu.
"We need common measures to prevent and fight against the fast spread of swine flu," Prime Minister Hun Sen said. "Southeast Asian leaders should have an emergency meeting right now."
Southeast Asian countries have not yet confirmed any cases of swine flu, but scores of tests were being carried out on anyone reporting flu symptoms. New Zealand confirmed 14 cases _ the first in the Asia-Pacific region _ and South Korea was awaiting final test results in a "probable" case, all in people recently returned from Mexico.
Hun Sen, one of the region's most outspoken leaders, called on Thailand to host the meeting as the rotating chair of the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations. It should include health, agriculture and other relevant ministers, he said.
Governments in Asia have potent memories of the 2003 SARS crisis and bird flu. Bird flu first began ravaging poultry stocks across Asia in 2003 and has caused 257 human fatalities, mostly in Southeast Asia.
ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan said in a statement Wednesday that officials have "the necessary experience" from past outbreaks to coordinate as "swine flu threatens to spread to the region."
He said ASEAN was ready to quickly tap its emergency stockpile of 1 million courses of Tamiflu and Relenza, antiviral drugs that appear to be effective in combatting swine flu if the treatment is given early enough.
A teleconference was being arranged with the region's health officials and infectious disease experts "to review current preventative measures ... and the need to consider a common stand" on regional matters like border controls, quarantines and surveillance, the statement said.
Several countries in the region, including Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Singapore, were quick to install thermal scanners at airports to check for signs of fever in arriving passengers.
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Associated Press writer Jocelyn Gecker in Bangkok contributed to this report.
"We need common measures to prevent and fight against the fast spread of swine flu," Prime Minister Hun Sen said. "Southeast Asian leaders should have an emergency meeting right now."
Southeast Asian countries have not yet confirmed any cases of swine flu, but scores of tests were being carried out on anyone reporting flu symptoms. New Zealand confirmed 14 cases _ the first in the Asia-Pacific region _ and South Korea was awaiting final test results in a "probable" case, all in people recently returned from Mexico.
Hun Sen, one of the region's most outspoken leaders, called on Thailand to host the meeting as the rotating chair of the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations. It should include health, agriculture and other relevant ministers, he said.
Governments in Asia have potent memories of the 2003 SARS crisis and bird flu. Bird flu first began ravaging poultry stocks across Asia in 2003 and has caused 257 human fatalities, mostly in Southeast Asia.
ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan said in a statement Wednesday that officials have "the necessary experience" from past outbreaks to coordinate as "swine flu threatens to spread to the region."
He said ASEAN was ready to quickly tap its emergency stockpile of 1 million courses of Tamiflu and Relenza, antiviral drugs that appear to be effective in combatting swine flu if the treatment is given early enough.
A teleconference was being arranged with the region's health officials and infectious disease experts "to review current preventative measures ... and the need to consider a common stand" on regional matters like border controls, quarantines and surveillance, the statement said.
Several countries in the region, including Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Singapore, were quick to install thermal scanners at airports to check for signs of fever in arriving passengers.
___
Associated Press writer Jocelyn Gecker in Bangkok contributed to this report.
3 comments:
Who the hell are you HUN SEN? You are nothing to world attention.
I'm Surin Pitsuwan secretary general of ASEAN can't listen to a low life PM like you.
Secretary General,
Low life PM! You have no say in this matter.
Thailand FM, Kasit
The government of Cambodia must propose draconian measures to ensure that Puok Ah Jkuot Jruok Khmer-overseas escapees DO NOT further spread the swine flu in Cambodia.
PPU
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