Activity Report 2010 - Sovereign Military Order of Malta in the United ...

Congo
Building a different future
TOTAL AREA:
2,345,410 sq km
POPULATION:
68,692,542
GDP
PER CAPITA:
$300
LIFE EXPECTANCY
AT BIRTH:
54.36 years
A flying visit to Democratic
Republic of Congo leaves
a lasting impression: there is
much work to be done to help
victims of disease and
of violence.
Disinfecting a village house
from the plague
Malteser International has
been active in the breathtakingly
beautiful region
of Ituri and Haut Uélé,
near the Northern border
with Uganda, since 1966.
Initially, activities consisted of assisting
the Diocese of Mahagi in the distribution
of medicines.
This year they opened two large pharmaceutical
warehouses in Mahagi and
Ariwara, which supply two medical
districts with 2,000,000 inhabitants.
Very soon it became apparent that two
major health problems needed to be
addressed: the plague (which is
endemic in the area) and sexual violence
(which had escalated dramatically since
the second Congolese war in 1998-
2003).
In both cases the problem is communication.
As far as sexual violence is
concerned, the numbers are still very
high: each month there are at least 400
new reported cases. The women now
know that if they come to the Buu centre
within 72 hours of being raped they will
be given post exposure prophylaxis,
which minimises the risk to contracting
AIDS or sexually transmitted diseases.
Also, should they become pregnant as a
consequence of being raped, they will
receive assistance during their
pregnancy. All victims and, if possible,
their partners and families are given
expert counselling in order to fight the
stigma connected with rape, which
normally resulted in these women being
rejected by their families and villages.
But the Black Death still rages
From Buu we visit the Ndrele Health
Centre, which has achieved outstanding
success in the treatment of the plague.
It seems almost impossible that the
‘Black Death’ of the Middle Ages, which
had at one point killed one third of the
European population, could be
prevented and treated simply by training
and educating the people at risk.
Alphonsine, a strong looking middleaged
woman, is one of this breed of
survivors. She probably cannot read or
write, but when she woke up one
morning feeling feverish with a
headache and very painful underarm
lymph nodes she thought back and
remembered having seen some dead
rats around her house. So she asked
her neighbours to take her to hospital
where she received immediate
treatment and was discharged within a
few days – and without paying a cent,
she added with a huge smile!
Before leaving Ndrele we have the
opportunity of watching a disinfestation
campaign. Two men with special
clothing and masks spray all the huts
and the surrounding area within a 200
metre radius from Alphonsine’s hut.
Starting from the outer perimeter they
then converge towards Alphonsine’s hut
to the delight and amusement of the
whole village. The downside of this is
that unfortunately this procedure is very
expensive: the yearly cost is €300,000.
When we leave, and inevitably once
again we leave part of our hearts with
our black brothers and sisters who
struggle so bravely against their adversities,
we are chased by all the schoolchildren
of Ndrele in their blue and
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SOVEREIGN MILITARY HOSPITALLER ORDER OF ST. JOHN OF JERUSALEM OF RHODES AND OF MALTA