[Kabar-indonesia] Hundreds Of Dead Chickens In Bali Had Bird Flu: Official [+Thai fears]

[JoyoNews at aol.com]

also: Thai PM seeks to ease fears of economic fallout from bird flu

Indonesia: Hundreds Of Dead Chickens In Bali Had Bird Flu

BALI, Indonesia, Aug. 1 (AP)--Hundreds of dead chickens found on 
Indonesia's Bali island resort have tested positive for the H5N1 strain 
of bird flu, an animal health official said Tuesday. 

Around 300 birds died of the virus over the past week, said I Gusti 
Ngurah  Sandjaja in Bali's westernmost Jembrana district. 

"We have carried out a rapid test and found that they were positively 
infected by the bird flu virus," Sandjaja said. "Fortunately, there are 
no indications that the virus has spread to humans here." 

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Agence France-Presse
August 1, 2006

Thai PM seeks to ease fears of economic fallout from bird flu

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinwatra has insisted that the government could 
control the latest outbreak of bird flu, amid mounting concerns for critical 
industries like tourism and poultry exports.

"We are confident that Thailand can control the spread of the outbreak," 
Thaksin told reporters

He insisted the latest outbreak of the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus, which 
killed a 17-year-old boy last week in northern Thailand, would not affect the 
country's 31.8-billion-baht (836 million dollars) in chicken exports.

Thailand is the world's fourth-largest exporter of poultry, having lost the 
top spot after countries around the world slapped bans on raw Thai chicken over 
bird flu fears in 2004.

To survive, chicken exporters transformed their operations to export more 
processed chicken, which is cooked and does not pose a bird flu risk.

"The latest outbreak will not affect Thailand's chicken exports because we 
have already shifted our focus to cooked chicken," Thaksin said.

The shift to processed chicken has helped rebuild the battered industry. With 
270,000 tonnes shipped overseas last year, chicken exports earned 31.79 
billion baht, nearing the levels seen before bird flu first emerged in late 2003.

Officials have insisted that the latest bird flu death will not derail 
Thailand's plans to eradicate the disease within three years, which the government 
believes is essential to shore up confidence in its poultry industry.

But the country's critical tourism industry has also voiced concerns about 
bird flu, urging the government to wipe out the latest outbreak before October, 
when peak season begins for the 12-billion-dollar business.

"Bird flu must be brought under control within two months. Otherwise, the 
tourism industry will suffer when high season arrives," the Thai Hotels 
Association vice president Prakit Shinamornpong told AFP.

Thailand has confirmed that the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus had re-emerged in 
two northern provinces, including one on the border with Laos.

Some 300,000 birds were slaughtered at the weekend in a bid to wipe out the 
virus, and health officials in broad swathes of the country are on high alert 
for any future cases.

But tourism agencies worry that the possible spread of bird flu in Thailand, 
as well as neighboring Laos, could hurt the industry just as it is rebounding 
from the effects of the December 2004 tsunami.

"Now we have received bookings for high season, which are normally made a few 
months in advance," Suparerk Soorangura, former president of the Association 
of Thai Travel Agents, told AFP.

"If Thailand fails to make it clear right now that the country can control 
the bird flu, tourists will panic about the outbreak and decide not to come to 
Thailand later this year," he said.

The tourism industry, which accounts for six percent of the Thai economy, has 
rebounded since the beginning of this year after last year's impacts of the 
December 2004 tsunami.

The industry expects 13 million tourist arrivals in 2006, generating revenue 
of about 12.3 billion dollars.

The kingdom was criticized for being slow to respond to the first outbreak of 
bird flu in 2003, but now is considered one of the countries best prepared to 
battle the disease.

Thailand has suffered 23 human cases of the disease since late 2003, 15 of 
them fatal.

Health experts fear the H5N1 strain could mutate into a form that is 
transmitted more easily between humans, marking the first stage of a global flu 
pandemic that could kill millions.

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Joyo Indonesia News Service
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