Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
chapter 4
the wHo and SarS:
to Global Health Security
adam Kamradt-Scott
the role, authority, and autonomy of international organisations (IOs) remain a fiercely
debated issue in contemporary international relations. criticised for their democratic
deficit, their (apparent) incapacitating politicisation, inefficiency, professed failures
or perceived inaction, Ios are regularly condemned by policy makers, governments,
activists, and academics alike (Pollack 2003; esty 2006; ruggie 1985). Indeed, even
when Ios are widely observed to have acted in accordance with their delegation
contract, they can still attract criticism. Given this state of affairs, it is often difficult
to assess whether such criticisms are justified and whether IOs are truly the self-
aggrandising, self-seeking tyrants that some suggest (barnett and Finnemore 1999).
This chapter examines one IO—the World Health Organization (wHo)—and a
number of the criticisms that have been made of its role, authority, and autonomy
in responding to the first new pandemic of the 21st century, namely severe acute
respiratory syndrome (SarS).
the emergence of SarS as a global threat in 2003 has been documented in
considerable detail elsewhere (see brooks 2005; abraham 2005; wHo 2006c, and
chapter 3 in this volume). In this chapter, only the basic facts need revisiting. the
disease originally began circulating in southern china in late 2002. It was carried to
Hong Kong by an unsuspecting doctor in early 2003, who transmitted the virus to a
number of international travellers, each of whom spread the disease to others upon
their arrival at various destinations around the world. Some five months later, the
disease had spread to 32 countries, had infected 8422 individuals, and had caused the
massive social and political upheaval (particularly in those countries worst affected)
and caused substantial economic damage estimated to be between US$11 billion to
health experts, scientists, governments, and the WHO, the first new pandemic of the
21st century was not only contained in a remarkably short period of time, but was
eradicated as well.
3
Given that this was one instance when an Io appears to have performed beyond
expectations, it is somewhat perplexing that a number of academic commentators
