Pakistan er måske verdens mest befængte land med børnelammelse, men for første gang slår myndighedenre til med masse-anholdelser af forældre, som først løslades, når de har afleveret et skriftligt tilsagn om at beskytte deres sbørn mod den frygtede lidelse.
Authorities in Peshawar, in the north-west of the country, detained 471 people and charged them with “endangering public security”, BBC online reports.
The Taliban-movement prohibit vaccinations and have attacked health workers claiming that the polio vaccination drive is a front for espionage or a conspiracy to sterilise Muslims..
The Pakistani government has declared “war” on the disease. “We have decided to deal with the refusal cases with iron hands. Anyone who refuses will be sent to jail,” said Riaz Khan Mehsud, deputy commissioner of Peshawar.
Pakistan accounts for the vast majority of polio cases globally and is one of only three countries where it remains endemic.
In 2014, polio cases in the country reached a 14 year high of 306. Nine new cases have been detected so far this year.
In November four polio vaccination workers were shot dead in the south-west city of Quetta.
