Hundreds of parents in Nigerian state refusing polio vaccinations for children

Hundreds of parents "are defying threats of jail time by refusing polio vaccines for their children in a high-risk northern Nigerian state," according to Muhammad Abdu Zango, Kano state coordinator of Journalists Against Polio, the Associated Press/Seattle Times reports.

Zango said more than 200 parents refused the vaccine in one district, and Amina Ahmed, who is one of the vaccinators, said dozens more refused in a different district, the news agency notes. Authorities have said parents who refuse could face prosecution, according to the news agency (8/2). At the launch of the immunization campaign, Governor Rabi'u Kwankwaso "expressed dismay over the fact that Nigeria is still listed among the four polio endemic countries in the world despite efforts by the government and international donor agencies to eradicate the disease," according to the Daily Trust/AllAfrica.com (Aliyu, 8/2).