MUI, Huh?

It is a good thing that this is a blog, and it is my blog, because I can hold pretty much any opinion that I want and then blog it in any way, shape or form that takes my fancy.

I have said this before, I will say it again, but I say it now...the MUI is a waste of space. The MUI or the Indonesian Council of Ulemas is a group of crotchety old men with nothing better to do than sit around handing out fatwas left, right, and center however it sees fit. Yes, I appreciate there are some out there that will argue that they are merely responding to requests that concerned Indonesian citizens pose on issues of "what is" and "what is not" permitted in Islam.

However, I would argue that when they are discussing medical and scientific matters that extend beyond the grasp of most mortals that they take the time to consult with experts in the field.

The MUI in its infinite wisdom has decided that a meningococcal vaccine produced by GlaxoSmithKline is haram or forbidden because it uses an enzyme in the production process that is derived from the humble pig. I appreciate that pigs are najis or ritually impure in Islam, but this is the only way that the vaccine can be produced.

There are claims that the vaccine can be produced without the pig enzyme. However, these claims have not been subject to medical review and the companies making them have not put forward the scientific evidence for scrutiny.

The vaccine production process involves the use of the pig enzyme. Nevertheless, the end product is cleaned in such a way that no traces of the enzyme remains. To all intents and purposes it is clean.

What is interesting is that the former Health Minister, Siti Fadillah Supari, says the MUI has issued a fatwa which is confusing. This is in fact code for, "the MUI does not know what it is talking about". It must be remembered that Supari, during her term as Health Minister, never missed an opportunity to stick it to western nations and their health practices. So, it seems unlikely she would side with GSK over the MUI unless the MUI were so wrong that the fatwa was not worth the paper it was written on.

What is truly funny, though, is that the GSK vaccine is used in both Malaysia and Saudi Arabia.

Why is this a big deal? Well, Saudi Arabia requires all prospective Haj pilgrims to be vaccinated against meningococcal bacteria and the possibility of contracting meningitis. The conspiracy theorists might hint that there is a need to follow the money trail on this one. The Indonesian Government had already forked out some IDR 20 billion for the GSK vaccine and will now have to fork out another IDR 50+ billion to secure enough supply of the MUI approved Novartis vaccine. Just as well I am not a conspiracy buff, eh?

Ho hum...

Justice Michael Kirby -- Criminalizing HIV

Australian High Court Judge Michael Kirby has spoken about the growing pressure on States to criminalize the transmission of HIV. Justice Kirby while addressing a criminal law conference in Dublin was speaking about the rising rates of HIV infection in Australia and the pressure to see those that transmit the virus punished.

It is Justice Kirby's view that criminalizing the transmission is going to have a a negligible effect on transmission rates, if any effect at all. The idea of criminalizing the transmission of HIV is likely to be counter-productive as this would be best described as a punitive measure.

The money that the State is likely to have to throw at this to make the policy of criminalizing the transmission of HIV would be better spent on research and development that leads to a vaccine and eventually a cure.

The fact that HIV is no longer the immediate death sentence it once was because of significant advances in the effectiveness of antiretrovirals and other drugs has meant that people have become much less cautious in protecting themselves. Perhaps psychologically the idea of a chronic illness is more palatable and less scary than rapid progression to death from an AIDS related illness.

I know Justice Kirby and I once wanted to clerk for the man. Justice Kirby has lost friends to the disease. So, in that sense he has a personal perspective on this.

Viral Marketing

It is being reported that Indonesia and the US are getting close to a deal on sharing samples of the bird flu virus. This is a good thing presumably because it will allow for vaccines and treatments to be developed and the medicines and vaccines developed will be provided cheaply to developing nations.

This development is also interesting because it was only recently that the Indonesian Health Minister, Siti Fadilah Supari, claimed that the US was conspiring with the World Health Organization to force developing nations into buying expensive medicines, drugs, and vaccines. Her book, Saatnya Dunia Berubah, Tangan Tuhan di Balik Flu Burung (Time for World Change, The Hand of God Behind Bird Flu), ruffled a few feathers (pun intended)!

The book has been hotly debated in various blogs because not only were the US and WHO conspiring, but the US was also using the bird flu virus to create biological weapons. One for the conspiracy theorists out there!

But with only two Indonesian provinces being free from bird flu, then it is likely that Indonesia stands to gain from this arrangement providing both sides keep their promises and commitments to the other.