 "Why has Pakistan shut down its first breast milk bank?")
Pakistan has shut down its first breast milk bank.
The bank at the Sindh Institute of Child Health and Neonatology (SICHN) in Karachi was shut down just weeks after it opened.
The development came after religious scholars declared it ‘forbidden under Islamic law.’
But what do we know about the bank? And what happened exactly?
Let’s take a closer look:
What do we know about the bank?
As per Jerusalem Post, the bank at SICHN was developed in partnership with UNICEF and the Pakistan Pediatric Association.
The bank was giving breast milk from donors to infants whose mothers could not produce sufficient milk.
As per The Guardian, the bank opened on 12 June.
The Print reported that the bank was inaugurated by Singh’s health minister Dr Azra Pechuho.
Officials from UNICEF and the Pakistan Paediatric Association were also present.
According to Dawn, the bank even obtaining a fatwa from Jamia Darul Uloom Karachi prior to launching.
The bank in a press release said the Jamia Darul Uloom Karachi had given “the necessary religious endorsement” to proceed.
“This fatwa was critical in ensuring that our efforts were in harmony with Islamic teachings, providing reassurance to the community and stakeholders involved,” the statement read.
The fatwa laid out certain conditions to set up the bank including
Complete data of women providing a ‘lot’ of milk should be kept and shared with babies’ mothers to keep a kinship record
It should be free
Muslim children should be given milk only from Muslim mothers
Families should be informed about the kinship concept
Milk should be free from bacteria and from healthy women
Should be given to infants under 34 weeks who do not have enough mother’s milk
Should be given to babies who need it for medical reasons
Personnel should be monitoring this activity
Dr Jamal Raza, the executive director of SICHN, earlier told _The Media Line, “_We have established a dedicated facility to collect, pasteurise, store, and distribute human breast milk donated by lactating mothers.”
A representative of SICHN told the newspaper Dawn, “We have 30 to 35 premature babies out of the 50 children admitted to our hospital at a given time. These babies needed mother’s milk to save them from complications that would in turn increase their chances for survival. Unfortunately, however, some mothers don’t have enough breast milk to support their nutrition.”
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe Print quoted experts as saying preterm babies that are given pasteurised donor breast milk rather than formula gain substantial protection against dangerous conditions like necrotising enterocolitis.
Why did the bank shut down?
Heated debate broke out on social media over the milk bank as well as the milk kinship concept.
In Islam, a woman who breastfeeds a child that is not hers establishes “milk kinship” or rada’ah, with the child.
As per The Print, Islamic law forbids marriages between “milk brothers and sisters.”
“This relationship is akin to blood ties, which forbids marriage between breastfed siblings within Islamic legal frameworks,” Mufti Syed Qaiser Hussain Tirmizi, a prominent Rawalpindi-based Islamic scholar, told The Media Line.
However, some theologians claim that the ‘milk kinship’ relationship only occurs when children are suckled.
However, others disagree.
As per Jerusalem Post, Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani, a Karachi-based retired Federal Shariat Court judge and leading Islamic scholar, then issued a fatwa declaring the human milk bank illegal.
The Jamia Darul Uloom Karachi then changed tack.
In a fatwa dated June 16, 2024, it declaring the pre-conditions it had laid out were nearly impossible to practically implement, as per Dawn.
But Raza told The Guardian this would not have been a problem.
“The original fatwa allowed us to mix a maximum of three to five mothers’ milk but we intend to keep it to one mother donating to one child at a time.”
Dr Hassan Jabbar, who works in the SICHN’s neo-natal unit, told the newspaper it has between five and eight pre-mature babies at a given time.
“It’s the same story that keeps repeating and which is very distressing,” said Jabbar. “I just saw a baby weighing a kilogram whose mother died while giving birth; how do we feed him?”
The Print reported that the matter is now in the hands of the Council of Islamic Ideology – an organisation formed in 1962 that advises the state on religious issues.
“We believe a thorough discussion involving nutritionists, pediatricians, and other relevant experts is essential on this sensitive topic,” Mufti Ghulam Majid, a research scholar at the Council of Islamic Ideology, told The Media Line. “It will be crucial to engage Pakistan’s prominent religious scholars to listen to and comprehend each other’s perspectives and arguments thoroughly.”
But as per Jerusalem Post, the CII in 2014 ruled that a human milk bank is illegal.
Some, like Tirmizi, say the bank could obey Islamic law as long as it keeps detailed records.
“This approach safeguards against any potential violations of Islamic law regarding familial and marital relations based on breastfeeding connections,” Tirmizi explained.
But others disagree.
Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi, chair of the Pakistan Ulema Council, told The Guardian, “The objective of the doctors who wanted to set up the human milk bank may be in good faith, but we concur with Jamia Darul Uloom Karachi, and do not think it needs to be encouraged.”
The human cost
The human cost of this decision cannot be ignore.
Mohammad Munawwar, whose premature infant son Ayan is in the hospital, told the newspaper the news of a milk bank being set up came as a ‘huge relief.’
Munawwar said he was collecting milk from various women relatives breastfeeding their own infants.
Munawwar had hoped to get some donated milk for his son, but the bank closed down before he could.
Munawwar said his baby has now “gained weight and looks good.”
He’s now worried about making ends meet.
“A tin of milk costs 2,600 rupees and it is consumed within six days,” Munawwar said. “I have three other kids and do not have a regular job.”
The institute, meanwhile, has said it will ‘seek further guidance’ from both Darul Uloom Karachi and the Council of Islamic Ideology.
“These esteemed institutions are pillars of religious scholarship and their insights will be invaluable in navigating this complex issue. We are dedicated to ensuring that our healthcare initiatives are not only scientifically sound but also religiously compliant,” the statement concluded.
Milk banks have long been the subject of contention in the Muslim world.
This despite Iran, Bangladesh and Kuwait having milk banks.
Some clerics have also given the go-ahead to operating milk banks in Singapore and the United States.
“Unfortunately, our society has lost the ability to debate like educated people. If we look at our religion, it’s obligatory upon us to make an effort even if one life is in danger,” a milk bank representative, referring to the spread of ‘misinformation’ online, told Dawn.
With inputs from agencies
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