HARARE – The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Monday renamed monkeypox to mpox, a move aimed at removing the stigma and racist notions towards Africans associated with the disease.
Monkeypox viral zoonotic infection spread from animals to humans.
Despite researchers failing to ascertain which animals naturally harbour the virus, they are aware that it circulates among many species of rodents and can be transmitted from animals to humans.
This makes ‘monkeypox’ a misnomer, as any rodent can carry the disease.
Monkeys are thereby stigmatised as the sole carriers of the disease.
The stigma also goes to affect black Africans who for years have been labelled by racists, especially white people, as monkeys.
This is an insult meant to describe them as primitive and sub-human.
In a statement, WHO said reports of racist and stigma language around the disease have been on a rise.
“Following a series of consultations with global experts, WHO will begin using a new preferred term ‘mpox’ as a synonym for monkeypox.
“Both names will be used simultaneously for one year while ‘monkeypox’ is phased out.
“When the outbreak of monkeypox expanded earlier this year, racist and stigmatizing language online, in other settings and in some communities was observed and reported to WHO.
“In several meetings, public and private, a number of individuals and countries raised concerns and asked WHO to propose a way forward to change the name,” WHO said.
About 31,000 cases of the virus and 12 deaths have been reported so far this year globally.
Countries such as Spain, Portugal, DRC, Egypt, Nigeria, South Africa, and the United Kingdom are among those that have recorded cases.
The disease causes fever, aches, and in some cases skin lesions.
