The central government has extended immediate compensation to
areas hit by bird flu, so as to effectively prevent and control the
H5N1 virus, according to a source at the Ministry of
Agriculture.
So far, 41 counties in 15 provinces, autonomous regions and
municipalities have confirmed cases of the highly pathogenic H5N1
strain of the bird flu virus.
The 15 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities are:
Guangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Anhui, Guangdong, Shanghai, Xinjiang,
Zhejiang, Yunnan, Henan, Gansu, Shaanxi, Jiangxi, Tianjin and
Tibet.
All poultry within 3 kilometers around the sites infected with
bird flu should be killed and disposed of safely, and mass culling
and compulsory vaccination should be done to all the poultry within
5 kilometers according to standards set by Ministry of
Agriculture.
All the vaccination costs within 5 kilometers around the sites
infected with bird flu will be shouldered by the government, and
those in non-compulsory areas will be shared by the government and
poultry breeders.
Villagers in Dingdang, in Guangxi's Long'an County, received
compensation from the local government several hours after their
poultry were killed.
Tang Bowen, head of Long'an County, praised the immediate
compensation as an effective means to prevent and control bird
flu.
Most villagers support the government's actions, Tang said.
About 14,000 local fowls were killed, and another 10,000 were
compulsorily vaccinated within one day.
The Chinese government is confident about the effectiveness of
its prevention and control measures, said a Ministry of Agriculture
official.
China has established a complete animal vaccination system, the
official said, and 300 animal disease testing stations have been
set up directly subordinate to the Ministry of Agriculture, as well
as 147 stations along China's borders.
(Xinhua News Agency February 17, 2004)
