The Nobel Peace Prize this year highlights the inhumane acts of the atrocious wars now under way. As the Indian Kailash Satyarthi and Pakistani Malala Yousafzai were receiving deserved accolades for their humanitarian work, another large outbreak of polio was reported inside Pakistan. Authorities logged the 200th new case of 2014, and declared a public health emergency. It is a perfect storm of ignorance and cruelty, aimed specifically and horrifically at children.
The Nobel Committee made too much of the fact that Mr Satyarthi is a Hindu, while his young co-laureate is Muslim. In fact, the two are not united across religious boundaries. They are simply united in the common causes of humanity and human decency. India's child labour has nothing to do with religion. And while 17-year-old Malala is forced to face down religious zealots, her goal is the positive one of helping children, particularly girls.
The spread of polio in Pakistan illustrates the country's problems. One of the main problems is the sheer heartlessness of the Taliban and similar extremists, who openly use children as a type of hostage. The Pakistani Taliban's campaign to kill health teams providing polio inoculations is touted as a political tactic. The government, not to mention its foreign supporters including the United States, want to protect children against polio. Therefore, those who oppose the government should also strive to prevent public health efforts.
The Taliban, which is a superstitious group, professes to see some connection between the anti-polio health teams and support for the government. The brilliantly heroic Malala, herself a victim of Taliban gunmen, is working to help all children receive polio immunisation. Rather obviously, almost all Muslims support this effort.
Because of the backward and violent policies of the Taliban, Pakistan accounts for 80% of global cases of polio. The World Health Organisation lists Pakistan as one of three countries capable of exporting the disease. War-torn Syria and the chaotic nation of Cameroon — hit by the Ebola outbreak — are the others.
Pakistan is unique as it is the only country where polio is spreading because of ignorance and opposition. Immunisation works. Pakistan's neighbour India had 700 cases in 2009, when authorities kick-started an aggressive inoculation campaign. In 2011, one new case was reported. Last year and this year, no one has contracted polio in India. Pakistan could easily achieve the same result and with Malala the country has a leader of sane people battling violent fanatics for children's health.
Pakistan is the worst-case example of the damage caused to public health by unreasonable, superstitious and anti-authoritarian forces.
But not all such damage can be pigeon-holed as uncivilised, or conveniently blamed on religious fundamentalism.
Polio is a contagious, life-changing disease. But in supposedly educated groups, other childhood diseases are making a strong comeback. In California, the state has reported 8,000 pertussis (whooping cough) cases. New measles cases have hit a 20-year high.
Most California parents, like most parents everywhere, immunise their children against these and other diseases. But a small and growing number of parents are refusing to allow such preventative medicine. They cite exactly the same reasons as the Taliban in Pakistan. That is, if the government is backing the immunisation campaigns, there must be something wrong.
So while Malala bravely confronts the dogmatic cruelty of her country's Taliban, other superstitious forces also are clearly at work. Not only security but a lack of education is putting millions at risk.