Monday, December 13, 2010

Pfizer in Nigeria

One of the most shocking revelations of the Wikileaks documents are the ones relating to Pfizer movements in Nigeria. They are shocking not only because of the implications of what is shown, but also for the similarities for what "The Constant Gardener".


In 1996, an outbreak of measles, cholera, and bacterial meningitis occurred in Nigeria. Pfizer representatives traveled to Kano, Nigeria to administer an experimental antibiotic, trovafloxacin, to approximately 200 children. Local Kano officials report that more than 50 children died in the experiment, while many others developed mental and physical deformities. In 2001, families of the children, as well as the governments of Kano and Nigeria, filed lawsuits regarding the treatment. [Wikipedia]

"Pfizer was accused of hiring investigators “to uncover corruption links” to Nigeria’s former attorney general and apply pressure to drop lawsuits against the company over a controversial 1996 test of antibiotics on children with meningitis, according to a secret State Department cable that related a company official’s account." [The New York Times]

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