NEW DELHI (AlertNet) - Allegations that U.N. peacekeepers from Nepal are the source of a cholera epidemic in Haiti are completely baseless, said a senior officer in the Nepalese army.
The cholera outbreak, which has killed nearly 300 people, is the first Haiti has seen in decades.
It has already struck more than 4,700 people and there are fears it could spread fast if it takes hold in the crowded camps for survivors of January's massive earthquake.
There have been widespread suspicions - mainly among ordinary Haitians - that the source of the epidemic is the Nepalese peacekeeping base in Haiti. U.N. investigators last week began collecting and testing samples from a stream of human waste flowing behind the base.
But a spokesman for the Nepalese army said its soldiers were not responsible for the outbreak, which is spread by contaminated human excrement, usually via water.
"Until now, whatever investigations have been carried out so far, there is no evidence to conclude that the disease has been caused or carried by the Nepalese peacekeepers," Brigadier General Ramindra Chhetri told AlertNet.
"No cholera bacteria was found in those samples collected inside and outside the barracks of the Nepalese peacekeepers."
Chhetri said all soldiers had undergone a medical check-up before being sent to Haiti. Up until now, no Nepalese soldier has tested positive for cholera or shown any symptoms.
There are 1,100 Nepalese soldiers in Haiti deployed as part of a 12,000-strong U.N. mission which is trying to maintain peace and security in the violent and impoverished Caribbean country.
SOUTH ASIA STRAIN
The U.S. Centre for Disease Control (CDC) said on Monday its DNA tests have shown a possible link to the South Asian nation.
The so-called DNA fingerprinting tests showed various samples of cholera taken from Haitian patients were identical to one another, and of all the known strains, they most closely resembled one from the South Asia region.
Health officials said the findings do not prove anything, but the revelations may fan the rumours that the Nepalese troops brought the cholera in. This, in turn, may worsen tensions leading up to elections later this month.
"Although these results indicate that the strain is non-Haitian, cholera strains may move between different areas due to global travel and trade," Haiti's Minister of Health Dr Alex Larsen said in a statement.
"Therefore, we will never know the exact origin of the strain that is causing the epidemic in Haiti. This strain was transmitted by contaminated food or water or an infected person."
Nepal, considered one of the poorest countries in the world, sees scattered outbreaks of cholera almost every year towards the end of its monsoon season, when diarrhoea-related illnesses spike due to contaminated water sources.
In August, the World Health Organisation said an outbreak in Nepal's Mid-Western region infected 1,400 people and left eight dead.
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
