南非农业部2004年8月8日发表声明,鉴于本国发生的禽流感疫情尚未得到解除,政府已决定全面停止禽类产品的出口,对疫区所有家禽的扑杀工作也正在进行。目前疫情仍被控制在东开普省的索摩赛特伊斯特地区,没有出现扩散的迹象。当地政府以30公里为半径辟出隔离区,区内3万多只鸵鸟以及鸡等家禽都将被扑杀并销毁。这一地区的两个鸵鸟养殖场于上周报告发现禽流感疫情,大批鸵鸟因之死亡。专家随后分离出 H5N2型禽流感病毒株。目前尚未调查出病毒是如何传入南非的,不过农业部官员指出,这一毒株不会对人的健康构成威胁。在宣布 South Africa’s Ministry of Agriculture issued a statement on August 8, 2004. In view of the fact that the outbreak of bird flu in its own country has not yet been lifted, the government has decided to completely stop the export of poultry products and culling of all poultry in the affected area is under way. The epidemic is still under the control of the Somerset East Region of the Eastern Cape Province with no sign of proliferation. The local government provides a quarantine zone at a radius of 30 kilometers. More than 30,000 ostriches and chickens in the area will be culled and destroyed. Two ostrich farms in the area reported a bird flu outbreak last week, leaving a large number of ostriches dead. Experts then isolated the H5N2 strain of bird flu. It has not yet been investigated how the virus was introduced into South Africa, but officials at the Ministry of Agriculture said the strain will not pose a threat to human health. Announced