Why the Kissing's Had to Stop
From Our Own Correspondent
BBC
4.4 • 1.3K Ratings
🗓️ 20 September 2014
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The kissing's had to stop in west Africa - a despatch from Mark Doyle about the Ebola crisis, which is now having a profound effect on people's lifestyles throughout the region. The United States Senate has approved President Obama's plan to arm and train moderate Syrian rebels to fight Islamic State militants - Jeremy Bowen, in Damascus, tells us this means a wide range of forces is lining up to combat the jihadists. Shabnam Mahmood's been to a society wedding in Pakistan - it was an opportunity to note some of the details of that country's social hierarchy. The controversial mayor of Toronto is in hospital battling cancer - Lee Carter says this latest chapter in Rob Ford's colourful life has brought a rare show of unity to a city Mr Ford was accused of dividing. And Will Grant tells us a story from the Latin American capital where the streets are clogged with vehicles yet many of the drivers haven't even taken a driving test!
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | You're about to hear from our own correspondent. We do two versions of the program, one for the BBC World Service, and this one's a download of the latest edition from BBC Radio 4. |
| 0:11.0 | It's introduced by Kate Aide. |
| 0:13.0 | Hello, today 6 million locked down in their homes in Sierra Leone as Ebola spreads out of |
| 0:20.9 | control in West Africa. The Americans prepare to step up their assault on the |
| 0:25.7 | jihadists of Islamic State, but the conflict in the Middle East is becoming more and more complicated. |
| 0:32.2 | There's a Shakespearean twist in the Mayor of Toronto's tale of scandal, |
| 0:36.4 | high drama and tragedy, and the political turmoil continues in Karachi, but it's not being allowed to interfere with the wedding season. |
| 0:46.7 | The vote in Scotland and its consequences may have dominated the headlines here this week, but |
| 0:51.7 | they were of little interest in West Africa, where there's still |
| 0:54.8 | just one topic of conversation, the continuing spread of the deadly Ebola virus. |
| 1:00.9 | Sierra Leone's in the middle of a three-day curfew on all its citizens as it tries to contain the epidemic. |
| 1:07.0 | Across the region, the disease has already claimed more than 2,600 lives. Aid agencies admit it's out of control. Mark Doyle says |
| 1:17.8 | Ebola is having a profound effect on everyone in West Africa. One of the things the people of West Africa are very good at is greeting each other. |
| 1:27.0 | In most of the countries of the region, it would be positively rude to exchange a quick British style, hello are you fine yes thanks fine and walk on |
| 1:36.6 | no in West Africa the normal thing to do would be to stop reach out one or even two hands, shake warmly and then embrace. |
| 1:47.0 | This is followed by much backslapping, more handshaking on points of agreement and even the odd high five. It's what children do, it's what |
| 1:55.8 | men do, it's what elderly ladies do. Well, not anymore. |
| 2:01.8 | Ebola is spread by contact with bodily fluids, so these days people shun contact with others, including shaking hands. |
| 2:11.0 | Of course, the worst impact of this disease has been on those who have |
| 2:15.4 | contracted it and their loved ones, but the end of hand shaking has affected |
| 2:20.3 | everyone everywhere in the region. The country that's been worst affected by |
| 2:26.0 | Ebola with the most deaths is Liberia. After President Obama announced the aid |
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