Indonesia measles: Three health workers on motorbikes threaded through Sumenep’s narrow lanes this week, blue cold boxes strapped to their backs and a register of unvaccinated children in hand. House to house, they delivered measles shots, part of an urgent push to contain a nine-month outbreak on Madura Island that has infected more than 2,600 children and caused 20 deaths this year.
Local authorities began an expanded campaign in August, releasing 78,000 doses through clinics, school drives and door-to-door visits. However, officials say progress is hindered by religious reservations over pork-derived gelatin, a common vaccine stabiliser. While many Islamic scholars permit its medical use under specific conditions, Indonesia’s top clerics ruled in 2018 that vaccines containing pig gelatin are haram, yet advised they may be used “for the benefit of society” until halal alternatives are available.
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“We have high hopes for Muslims in Indonesia… Let us ask the government to find a halal vaccine,” said Musthafa, general secretary of the Indonesian Ulema Council in Sumenep. Some parents remain wary; others have relented as hospitalisations rose. “There is a little doubt because it is not halal… but this is for the sake of the child’s health,” said Ayu Resa Etika, who chose to vaccinate her two-year-old after seeing neighbourhood cases surge.
The push comes amid slipping coverage. Indonesia’s measles-rubella immunisation reached 86.6% of targets in 2023, falling to 82.3% in 2024, according to Health Ministry data, below the 95% threshold needed to prevent outbreaks. Globally, the WHO says 84% of children received a first measles dose last year and 76% received two; 60 countries reported large outbreaks.
From May to July, isolation wards in Sumenep filled as hospitals treated over a hundred cases daily at the peak. Paramedics now shuttle vaccines to homes and schools, hoping to blunt transmission ahead of future waves. “We cannot compel reluctant parents,” a local official said, “but we can keep bringing the vaccine closer and keep the conversation open.”
(Source: The Associated Press)
