First lady Laura Bush sold on 'Nets' Elizabeth McKee Gore, Dec 1, 2008
NOTHING BUT NETS PHOTO
First lady Laura Bush presents mosquito bed nets to Dr. Cynthia Maung.
By Elizabeth McKee Gore Special Contributor
Millions joined President George and Laura Bush last August in witnessing the Summer Olympics in Beijing. But on the same trip where she watched medal-winning performances that changed the lives of top athletes, Mrs. Bush shined light on another story—one that can change and save thousands of lives.
It is the story of refugees living along the Thailand-Burma border, where malaria is rampant and where the gift of a long-lasting, insecticide-treated bed net can prevent infection and death.
After Cyclone Nargis struck Burma in May, killing 85,000 people and leaving tens of thousands still missing, Mrs. Bush, a member of the United Methodist Church, said, “As they cope with this tragedy, the men and women of Burma remain in the thoughts and prayers of many Americans.”
In the weeks after, she learned that the cyclone was the latest in 20 years of events that have contributed to hopelessness among 123,000 registered refugees and several thousand unregistered asylum-seekers who live in nine camps along the Thai-Burmese border. Most have fled political oppression in Burma.
In early summer, the first lady announced her plans to stop en route to the Olympics and visit the camps in Thailand to see the conditions and to bring attention to the issues facing the refugees, including the prevalence of malaria.
Over the last several years, Mrs. Bush has worked tirelessly to raise awareness that a child dies of malaria every 30 seconds. “Every one of us can do something to help prevent the suffering caused by malaria,” she said at the 2006 White House Summit on Malaria. “The more people know about this disease, the more quickly we can defeat it.”
In preparation for the trip, the White House contacted the United Nations Foundation to request that Nothing But Nets provide 10,000 insecticide-treated bed nets for the Mae La refugee camp that Mrs. Bush planned to visit.
The people of the United Methodist Church, along with the United Nations Foundation, are a founding partner in Nothing But Nets, a global grassroots campaign to prevent malaria. To date, more than 80,000 individuals have contributed more than $20 million to send insecticide-treated nets to Africa.
While Nothing But Nets does not have plans to expand outside the continent of Africa, the United Nations Foundation granted the White House’s request for nets to be sent in coordination with the first lady’s trip.
Arriving in Thailand, Mrs. Bush and the Nothing But Nets team traveled first to Mae La on the border with Burma. Malaria is the most frequently treated illness in the refugee camp, where 39,000 displaced persons have been served since 1984.
Deaths from malaria are not as high in Southeast Asia as in Africa, but a different type of malaria makes it a debilitating and deadly disease. Mrs. Bush’s questions and knowledge of the situation illustrated her respect and concern for the refugees.
She next visited the Mae Tao Clinic run by Dr. Cynthia Maung, a well-known Burmese humanitarian in the Tak province. The clinic provides basic medical care and services to hundreds of patients each day, including malaria prevention and treatment.
While at the clinic, Mrs. Bush met with area physicians and Nothing But Nets to discuss the difficulties in providing health care and fighting malaria. More than once, she told the doctors and refugees that they would be in her prayers. She also noted the obvious fatigue of the medical staff and development workers.
After visiting the camps and clinic, Mrs. Bush spoke to more than 30 members of the international media traveling with her that day. She described what she had seen and expressed her admiration for those working to help the refugees.
“One of the things that we brought are mosquito nets,” she said. “Malaria is a very serious problem here on the Thai-Burma border. So we—Nothing But Nets, with help from the President’s Malaria Initiative—are giving 10,000 mosquito nets to this part of Thailand.”
Mrs. Bush’s concern earned her the respect of the Burmese refugees and of the doctors and development workers with whom she met. She also brought to light the continuing struggle of this forgotten region, and, with Nothing But Nets, gave the gift of life.
Ms. Gore is executive director of global alliances for the United Nations Foundation. This article is reprinted from Interpreter (November-December 2008), a publication of United Methodist Communications, www.interpretermagazine.org.
NOTHING BUT NETS PHOTO
The people of the United Methodist Church, along with the United Nations Foundation, are a founding partner in Nothing But Nets, a global grassroots campaign to prevent malaria. To date, more than 80,000 individuals have contributed more than $20 million to send insecticide-treated nets to Africa.
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