Mass hysteria blamed for Afghan schoolgirl 'poisoning,' not the Taliban

The Afghan school girl 'poisonings' bear a striking resemblance to past cases of mass hysteria, particularly one in Palestine in 1983.

By Dan Murphy,?Staff writer / July 9, 2012

Afghan students keep watch at the entrance of Habibia High School in Kabul, Afghanistan, June 5. Poison attacks on schools across Afghanistan, mostly against those teaching girls, have forced students to defend themselves, an extra-curricular activity imposed by the government which blames the Taliban for the violence.

Mohammad Ismail/Reuters

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The Taliban have been poisoning scores of Afghan schoolgirls for attending school, right? Wrong ? at least that?s the position of the World Health Organization.

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Schoolgirls and teachers complaining of nausea and other symptoms have reported poisoned water supplies at at least 12 girls? schools across Afghanistan since 2009. But there have been no fatalities, and despite extensive efforts by the UN's World Health Organization to get to the bottom of the matter no one has found proof of poison or any other organic cause.

Related: Afghan woman executed under Western noses

Now, investigators at the World Health Organization (WHO) report that the most likely answer to the mystery is that the reports of poisoning are a form of mass hysteria.

The girls and teachers suffering from symptoms really believe they're sick, and in a way, they really are. Nausea is nausea, fainting is fainting. And though it seems odd, there have been similar cases around the world down the centuries. Some historians believe the precipitating events that led to the Salem, Mass. Witch Trials of 1692-93, which led to the murder of about two dozen accused "witches," was mass hysteria among a group of girls.

In a little noticed article in the WHO's Weekly Epidemiological Monitor from May titled "Mass Psychogenic Illness in Afghanistan" the organization reports on the latest allegation of poisoning in Taluqan district, Takhar Province?:

"A total of 103 ? school girls from Bibi Hajerah High School were admitted with symptoms of weakness, nausea, dizziness, and syncope. Some reported smelling a stench.... Clinical assessment by the attending physicians and similar past history rule out an organic cause. The cases were considered as a mass psychogenic illness, given treatment and discharged home."?

The WHO goes on: "This is the fourth year where episodes of suspected mass poisoning of school girls is reported from Afghanistan. Like in the previous years the events are triggered off with one girl developing symptoms of headache, weakness, dizziness, nausea, and fainting. Often these outbreaks were believed to be the work of political elements in the country who oppose girls education. Reports of stench smells preceding the appearance of symptoms have given credit to the theory of mass poisoning.... However, investigations into the causes of these outbreaks have yielded no such evidence so far. In the last four years over 1,634 cases from 22 schools have been treated for Mass Psychogenic Illness in Afghanistan. There are no related deaths reported."

As far as I can tell, The Daily Telegraph was the first to pick up on the WHO assessment that there hasn't been any poisoning.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/RVkrNqMkh_k/Mass-hysteria-blamed-for-Afghan-schoolgirl-poisoning-not-the-Taliban

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