PARAMARIBO – The residents from the hinterland have been cut off from healthcare since Tuesday because the workers at the Medische Zending (MZ) went on strike. Roy Haverkamp, union chairman at the MZ, explained that the union members did not receive the purchasing power boost in August and September. He was told that the Health Ministry has already given the green light but that the Ministry of Finance and Planning still has not done its part.

 Chairman Haverkamp made it clear that officials must inform the workers if there is no money. “Some people need the money urgently,” said the union chairman who added that the workers stay home because they have no money to pay for transportation. The union has given the workers permission to handle urgent cases and to keep the ambulance service up and running. All of the other regular health care services have been paralyzed. “As soon as the money is transferred to the bank account, the people will get back to work,” said Haverkamp. One of the workers disapproved of the way that she and her colleagues are being treated although they provide an important service to the nation. “How long must we wait for the purchasing power boost?”…[+]