April 9, 2007

Indonesia's West Java sets new regulations on poultry to curb bird flu

Indonesia's West Java province has signed into law a regulation to fight the spread of bird flu in the province.

The regulation states that all poultry must be kept at least 2.5 meters away from all houses, and should be placed in an area that receives direct sunlight.

Despite recent efforts to contain the disease, bird flu cases in the region are still occurring.

Unlike Jakarta, the West Java regulation does not ban backyard farming even though the province has been hit the hardest by bird flu, with 27 deaths out of 29 reported cases of the H5N1 virus. Nationwide, 73 people have died out of 93 confirmed cases.

Authorities are hoping to the regulation would be able to resolved or alleviate the problem.

However, the regulation could prove to be toothless as it does not contain sanctions for violators, critics said. 

Moreover, even though the regulation covers action to be taken in the case of infected farms, it failed to address prevention issues, critics, including those in the veterinarian authorities said.

In the first three months of this year, more than 19,500 chickens had died in 24 regencies and mayoralties. Bird deaths were recorded in 189 villages and 132 districts, while more than 12,000 birds being destroyed.