‘Congress has written to the minister’s fraternity seeking for them to consider this as a real issue’: Health service calls for vax support from religious leaders following disturbing phone calls

A primary health care service has raised concerns that some religious leaders in the region were discouraging Indigenous Australians from receiving the coronavirus vaccine.

A PRIMARY health care service in Central Australia is calling for a local religious body to publicly support the Covid-19 vaccination rollout following, “worrying” phone calls made to the clinic preaching misinformation about the jab.

Central Australian Aboriginal Congress chief executive Donna Ah Chee said Congress had received worrying phone calls last week about their drive to vaccinate remote residents.

The calls raised concerns some religious leaders in the region were discouraging Indigenous Australians from receiving the coronavirus vaccine. Although the origin of the phone calls are unknown, Ms Ah Chee called on the Alice Springs Ministers Fellowship to show support for the jab as a religious body.

Central Australian Aboriginal Congress CEO Donna Ah Chee. Photo: EMMA MURRAY

“We had two phone calls to our clinic accusing us of killing Aboriginal people and we do think that is potentially motivated by religious background,” she said.

“Congress has written to the minister’s fraternity seeking for them to consider this as a real issue and a barrier to Aboriginal people getting vaccinated.

“It was a private number and we’ve reported it to the police and hopefully they will be able to track down who it was.”

The congress chief executive said it was currently an assumption the problematic calls were religiously-motivated.

The fellowship has since said it was consulting with its members, according to an ABC radio report.

Follow @jasmineaburke