Are Mauritians too scared of death?
17. Aug, 2009 
10 Comments
This is not a joke; this is a serious post. The panic surrounding the H1N1 (A) flu in Mauritius is a symptom of a greater disease: the disproportionate fear of death in Mauritius. Of course everyone in every country is scared of death. Of course every country is anxious about the flu pandemic. But the reaction from the news in Mauritius, and from most Mauritian bloggers, is near-ridiculous.Is there another country in the world where 22,000 out of 1,200,000 people go to hospitals on average everyday (without pandemic s’il vous plait!)? Either Mauritians are the sickest people on Earth, or they are simply freaks. Here, in the UK, you don’t see the doctor when you’ve got flu. You stay at home one day, so as not to infect your colleagues. You take your paracetamol that you buy yourself from the local chemist, you drink lots of fluids and you remain in bed. The next day, when you are not infectious, but still a bit weak, you go to work without complaining.
10 people died that day in the North of the UK, and nobody complained about it. A stupid storm is not what will halt the UK economy. Imagine how much money the UK would loose if they adopt the “Cyclone Class 2 system” like in Mauritius! This has nothing to do with the UK being a more developed country. This is more to do with a nation of courageous and responsible citizens, compared with wimps that live in Mauritius.
The world does not stop when 5 or 6 people die from a virus. Thousands more will catch it and live on, strengthening their immune system and making the human race stronger. Instead of whining, get a life and continue working/studying to help the Mauritian economy grow stronger.
OMG! I didn't realize how severe the panic was in Mauritius. Last time I spoke to my mum she sounded anxious too!
Swine flu is here in the Caribbean too but for carnival everybody was out playing mas! Lol…Over here they say no rain no flu ah stop us from playing mas!
Yea I remember in London when I was sick I was taking lemsip!
Well let's hope the death toll in Mauritis doesn't rise…else it'd be chaos there…
Some people are over-reacting!
We should take it with more fun, like no handshaking and the latest "How to dress at work".
@Wez
and they do not want to have a life! Me too, when I get flu here I just take Lemsip or Beechams.
Yes, Mauritians like to panic
It's always chaos in Mauritius, more or less deaths wont change anything!
@Yashvin
It's good to see people like you seeing these petty issues light heartedly.
I don't want to offend anyone in Mauritius, but yes definitely. an over-reaction is definitely happening in relation to the h1n1
@Bruno Lemsip & Beechams rock! :p (maybe the MoH of Mru should recommend that when they run out of antivirals
)
From UK I can imagine that you are having the impression that it is chaos here from what you read in the media. But being here I think its only chaos in the hospitals, otherwise no problem in Mauritius as usual.
What you said about people going to hospital for a flu instead of simply staying home and drinking some paracetamol they would bought from the pharmacy next door is a deeper issue. It is linked to the welfare state put in place by SSR… Why go and buy paracetamols when you can get it for free at the hospital, even if you wait for two hours in terrible conditions… That's the mentality of many mauritians…
21th century Mauritius are facing a pandemic for the first time. And they can't resist to take too much precautions and overeact !!!
Sa meme apel morisiens! Hahaha.
Some people are even considering to have classes via MBC channel 3 in case the government decides to close all schools! Like the students are going to stay in front of their TVs from 9am to 3pm to follow classes! o_O
@nav
Yeps Lemsip and Beechams rock 
It's true that from here, we do not understand this over reaction
@Ludovic
Do you imply that the situation is not chaotic on the streets and that people do not scorn at sneezers and coughers?
Thx for enlightening us
@Yadhav
Oui, zot encore arrierer
@Lady Angele
Yeah I heard this weird proposal from Lysie Ribot. Ki kalite dimoun zot pe metter pou poz candidat. Ki imbecilite encore li pou al dir si li rent parlement?
So Mauritius
u should understand that in UK , a quarter of the population does not work in the sugar cane fields or worked in them and have not gone to school more than the 4th-5th class.. you should also understand that compared to uk, the pension old persons get here are peanuts and do not suffice for even buying food.. and now when they are sick, it is even more complicated.
It is not much about panicking than misinforming people.
The current paranoia is mainly due to the fact that the first deaths started to come up with the first persons infected and since the virus has gone 10000miles from europe to here, it is much more powerful..
300 persons infected on 45 millions.. is that worth being panic striken ??
49 cases in 1 week for 1.2million is quite alarming !!
u said it! Responsible citizens is what makes the difference.