Sir: The World Health Organization (WHO) just certified South East Asia polio-free but this was not good news for Pakistan and Afghanistan. India, a country with a huge population of about 1.27 billion, was declared a polio-free nation as well. There are just three countries in the world today that still have more than just a few polio patients and sadly Pakistan is also counted in this inauspicious list along with Afghanistan and Nigeria. After the hunting of Osama bin Laden with the help of Dr Shakeel Afridi, polio workers in Pakistan are being murdered brutally. It is not because people do not want an end to this disease but because people in Waziristan and Peshawar worry about a repeat of that episode. The government of Pakistan should create awareness about this disease among people all over Pakistan because this is one of the most serious issues in this country. Although the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) says that polio can be eliminated throughout the country before the end of this year, the federal government as well as the provincial government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa must create awareness among citizens living in the province to convince people that the government just wants to eradicate polio from the country without intending to harm the people. We may then see a polio-free Pakistan in the near future. SYED OMER NADEEM Karachi