Commentary
BEIJING – President Xi Jinping’s inspection visit to Wuhan, the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak, indicated that rays of victory over the epidemic are emerging after weeks of all-out efforts by the entire country.
When Xi, wearing a facemask, talked with frontline medical staff, community workers, patients and residents, the strength and fortitude of the Chinese nation shone through. The Chinese people have, with their devotion and sacrifice, made it evident that the novel coronavirus is a foe that can be defeated.
The visit came on the same day when all the city’s 16 makeshift hospitals were closed. Mainland China reported only 19 new cases on Monday, marking the lowest total since late January. As of yesterday, the Chinese mainland excluding Hubei province had not seen any new indigenous COVID-19 cases for three consecutive days.
President Xi Jinping chairs a teleconference and delivers an important speech after yesterday’s field inspection of the COVID-19 epidemic prevention and control work in Wuhan. – Xinhua
Normality is returning
Normality is steadily returning to the country. China is not politically weakened as a few Western observers predicted, but has stabilized the situation, contained most of the cases within its borders and earned valuable time – at least three weeks – for other countries to enhance their preparedness.
Progress does not come without sacrifice. Wuhan, with a population of more than 10 million, has been on lockdown for nearly 50 days. Many other cities in Hubei province have also taken similar measures to prohibit or restrict inter-city movements.
The unprecedented move is not perfect – bringing city life almost to a standstill and creating short-term economic repercussions. But the leadership has the political resolve to do so, because quarantine is the most effective way to keep COVID-19 isolated while the disease is not truly understood and there are no medicines or vaccines at hand.
The city has seen heroic battles by people from across the country, and some of them have sacrificed their lives. Now the efforts have paid off. The spread of COVID-19 has been basically curbed in Hubei and its capital Wuhan.
The world would have seen many more cases outside China if it were not for China’s actions. With the WHO’s encouragement, some countries are turning to learn from China’s strategies and have imposed their own strict measures and quarantines.
Final victory for all
In an interconnected world, China eyes securing a final victory for all. The country shared the virus’s genetic sequence with the WHO, a significant move for international society to work out solutions for treatment. China also updates the number of new infections, deaths and recoveries on a daily basis.
Since the start of the outbreak, Xi has had telephone conversations with heads of state or government from more than a dozen countries, including US President Donald Trump, boosting international confidence in the fight against the epidemic.
Facing the growing global spread of the disease, China provides support to other countries despite its own difficulties.
China has decided to donate US$20 million to the WHO to help give full play to its coordinating role in international action against the epidemic, especially helping small and medium-sized countries with weak public health systems shore up their lines of defense.
China is ready to provide other countries with masks and other medical supplies. No restrictive trade measures have been placed by the Chinese government on the export of surgical masks and their manufacturing materials which are badly in need around the world.Test of humanity
The war against the virus is a test of humanity. Unfortunately, it also mirrors some ugly faces. Since the outbreak, some Western media and politicians’ smear campaigns against China’s response to the outbreak on ideological grounds have never stopped. Among these irresponsible and ill-advised comments was US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s rhetoric dubbing COVID-19 as “Wuhan coronavirus.” Such racism and xenophobia are totally unbecoming of a national spokesperson. Turning a blind eye to science, such politicians have only left listeners in the rest of the world shaking their heads.
Unfounded assertions about the origin of the virus can do nothing but create fear, rumors and prejudice that jeopardize global collaboration in the fight against the virus since the work on tracing the virus origin is unfinished and no conclusion has been reached. The self-centered, unprofessional and unethical remarks by a certain US federal official on job opportunities were similarly ill-advised. Those comments exhibited a paucity of compassion and logic, as no country or economy can escape the repercussions of a global epidemic.
But all this will fade away before the spectacle which is now unfolding. Humanity shines through the dark cloud of the epidemic.
China will move forward, unflinching and unswerving, and continue to join hands with other countries until the whole task is complete and the whole world is safe.
The measures China has taken offer lessons for improving the global response to the disease. They may not be simply copied as countries have different conditions and social systems. But solidarity, the courage to face challenges and the unconquerable human will to survive at all costs is what the entire international community needs.
The fight is continuing, and China is writing an epic with the world. Through our devotion, sacrifice and perseverance, the glory of mankind will be born again. – Xinhua
President Xi Jinping talks with a community worker during his COVID-19 prevention and control inspection visit to Wuhan. – Xinhua
