The fear of Ebola led to slayings — and a whole village was punished

Detailed account of the aftermath of murder by local villagers in Guinea of eight persons who came to teach about Ebola

WASHINGTON POST  by Amy Brittain                                                                             March 1, 2015
WOMEY, Guinea — The lecture about the dangers of Ebola had just begun, but the village had heard enough. A group of women started chanting, to warn the others against the visitors, “They are coming to kill you.” A mob of men masked their faces, waved machetes and rushed toward the speakers. Stones began to fly.

Thousands of Womey residents fled after the killings when Guinea’s military invaded and looted the vllage. More than a dozen died from malnutrition after living for months in the surrounding bushland. (Jane Hahn/For The Washington Post)

On a September day in a peaceful Guinean farming village, a simple presentation turned into a slaughter. Two days later, authorities uncovered the bodies of eight people in a ditch used for human waste. The dead, who had come to the village of Womey to teach about Ebola, were local officials, doctors, journalists and a popular pastor. Several had their throats slit....

The Womey killings show, on an extreme level, the problems that health workers across West Africa face when they enter communities that have little to no education, along with no understanding of the realities of Ebola and how it spreads. Security incidents related to public health efforts continue to be reported throughout much of Guinea.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/the-fear-of-ebola-led-to-murder--and-a-whole-village-was-punished/2015/02/28/a2509b88-a80f-11e4-a162-121d06ca77f1_story.html?hpid=z2