NICD warning on monkeypox causes uproar in LGBTQIA+ community

THE National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) has distanced itself from “undue bigotry and misinformation” brought on by a statement the institute released on monkeypox which infuriated queer South Africans.

The furore comes following a report of the first case of monkeypox in South Africa this week and as the World Health Organization weighs whether to declare monkeypox an international emergency, which could escalate the global response as cases rapidly rise in parts of the world.

The NICD said the majority of the incidents to date involved “individuals that self-identify as men having intercourse with men”.

LGBTQIA+ people have expressed dissatisfaction with the statement.

The NICD responded in a statement that the purpose of the information given on monkeypox was to provide epidemiological context for the ongoing outbreak.

“It was by no means meant to profile any members of society. We would like to stress that any persons, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation, can acquire monkeypox, if they had close contact with someone infected with the virus.”

The NICD said it condemned any form of prejudice and any hateful comments towards any individuals/ groups on social media platforms.

Programmes manager at Gender Dynamix Anil Padavatan said it was unacceptable for any agency to say they’re spreading information like that to inform the public.

“When you’re giving out information it needs to be for a reason. They need to explain why they think it’s necessary to give out this information.

“This is very irresponsible. They’re sending information and saying they’re doing it for public information. My question is, as a scientific entity, what is their purpose in sending out this information?”

Padavatan said the state and organisations like the NICD need to focus on prevention instead of the cure.

“They need to be providing the smallpox vaccine to people at sexual health clinics. The smallpox vaccine is highly effective in preventing monkeypox,” he said.

“The efficacy rate of this vaccine is 85%, which is higher than some Covid-19 vaccines. This can prevent transmission but no one is doing anything about rolling it out.

“This is not about individuals taking responsibility, the state needs to take responsibility,” Padavatan said.

“Individuals have no way of protecting themselves against monkeypox. This makes me question if they’re in a good position to be advising the government on an effective and simple method of prevention,” he said.

Head of the Solidarity Doctors Forum Advisory Board Dr Angelique Coetzee said the remark made by the NICD was information.

“People ask where it is most prevalent and this is what the statistics are showing us. This has nothing to do with being homophobic, how else do we present the statistics?

Monkeypox is a viral infection spread through close contact, transmitted from animal to person and from person to person. This is not an STD.”