re: #148 marjoriemoon

The UN investigation into the source of the epidemic comes after rumours of a “foreign disease” triggered fear and then anger among Haitians. The first confirmed cases have been traced along the Artibonite River, not far from the UN base which houses nearly 500 Nepalese guards. Locals have long complained about the stinking sewage oozing from the base, contaminating the river that they rely on for drinking water. UN military police were spotted last week taking samples from a broken pipe next to the base’s latrines and an overflowing septic tank. The UN has belatedly agreed to review all its sanitation systems across Haiti, officials told Associated Press.

The latest Nepalese deployment arrived in October after summer’s cholera outbreaks in Nepal. The UN’s insistence that none of the peacekeepers showed symptoms of the disease has caused frustration among experts as 75 per cent of people infected with cholera are without symptoms but remain contagious. These denials came as aid agencies struggled to convince people about the need for good hygiene and sanitation regardless of disease symptoms.

I wonder if the guards are Gurkas.