Amazonas state health emergency affects indigenous communities

A health emergency is unfolding in the Manapiare municipality of Amazonas state, Venezuela, affecting approximately 165 members of the Ye’kwana and Sanema indigenous ethnic groups. An outbreak of an unknown disease has resulted in the deaths of three children: a one-year-old in Wasaraña, a three-day-old newborn in Cacurí, and a six-year-old in Isla Tití.

Symptoms reported among those affected include high fever, gastrointestinal issues such as vomiting and diarrhea, and acute respiratory complications like bronchopneumonia. Two children, a Ye’kwana girl and a Sanema infant, are currently in critical condition in the Cacurí sector.

Indigenous organizations Wayamoutheri and Kuyunu have issued urgent appeals to the Venezuelan government, the Ministry of Health, and local authorities. They are demanding the immediate aerial evacuation of critical patients to Puerto Ayacucho, the delivery of essential medicines and medical supplies to undersupplied clinics in Tencua and Cacurí, and the deployment of epidemiological specialists to identify the cause of the infection. The crisis affects at least 12 localities, including Cacurí, Joroimeña, and Tencua.