US seeks selfish gains as China goes all out to curtail coronavirus spread
While
China marshals a collective effort to combat the outbreak of novel coronavirus
(2019-nCoV), some Western countries, led by the US, are seizing the opportunity
to stir up trouble and attack China.
The
truth is, US system is not nearly as efficient as the Chinese system. The US
method of resolving problems is to procrastinate. For example, US President
Donald Trump’s administration simply chooses to build a border wall to resolve
illegal immigration issues.
Trump
wanted to build the wall, but Democrats in the US Congress oppose it. Such a
situation leads to procrastination and public complaints. Various interest
groups often have different demands and goals on major issues. Thus, the US is
often inefficient in resolving problems, including the spread of influenza in
the US.
The US
always worries about economic cost when responding to public health issues and
emergencies. For example, when the wildfires swept across California in 2018,
the local government paid inmates only $1 an hour to fight the fires. In many
parts of the US, even firefighting has been privatized and handed to
profit-seeking corporations. This basic service now depends on how much people
can pay.
For the
Chinese government, people’s safety is top priority. Only by completely
eliminating the spread of the virus can the Chinese government fulfill its
responsibilities.
The US
also tends to hype the human rights issue. The
New York Times claimed that China’s lockdown of the city of Wuhan, in
Central China’s Hubei Province “would almost certainly lead to human rights
violations.”
The
statement is immoral and distorts the truth. Essentially, public health issues
are not an issue of human rights. There must be efficient prevention and
control.
During
the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, the US did not conduct inspections at airports and
borders as soon as it could, which failed to contain the spread of the disease.
During Hurricane Katrina in 2005, people’s houses were damaged by floods and
robberies were rampant.
Why didn’t
the US talk about human rights then? When facing the challenge of survival, the
rights of individuals must be subordinated to the needs of majority. This is
the same in both Eastern and Western ethics. When it comes to life and death,
we must first solve the problem of survival before considering how to live more
comfortably.
Although
the US claims to be tolerant of diverse opinions, criticizing China is the
mainstream political discourse. Whenever something goes wrong in China, many US
media outlets and politicians consistently attribute the problem to China’s
system.
China is
fighting the 2019-nCoV with confidence. However, some remarks emanating from
the US are quite negative, a result of Washington’s prejudice, double
standards, and binary opposition mind-set.
Some US
politicians tend to interpret non-political issues with a political thinking.
They are unaware that such problems require global efforts. Certain US
accusations against China are morally indecent, which may negatively influence
the world’s efforts to jointly address the 2019-nCoV and other similar public
health issues.
Attacking
China’s system clearly deviates from the general trend in which all countries
around the world join hands to cope with public health issues. Such a move
reflects that some US politicians lack a conscience and a spirit of
self-reflection, especially so when considering the US itself has failed to
properly handling similar problems.
While
the 2019-nCoV remains so far unchecked, all countries and regions should
coordinate and cooperate to cope with the challenges of bringing it under
control. The US should pay more attention to exchanging experiences with China
to avoid similar outbreaks, rather than politicizing the issue and placing
blame.
Tackling
the 2019-nCoV requires a systematic approach, and internal and external efforts
must be jointly made. China should first handle its internal affairs. In the
course of dealing with the epidemic, despite some twists and turns, the country’s
general direction is very clear - to defeat the virus and restore public
confidence.
This
crisis needs a national effort. Relevant policies and resources should be made
and allocated step by step, leading to a sustainable and virtuous cycle. This
is the fundamental direction we need to respond to outside doubt.
Meanwhile,
we should also publicize our fruitful work in an effective way, and inject the
international community with more confidence in China’s actions.
China
should work with other countries and regions to cope with the 2019-nCoV and
make timely and prompt counterattacks against forces with evil intentions. In
this way, the world will see which countries are really working on public
health issues, and which have ulterior motives. This is also an efficient way
to respond to some US politicians’ groundless attacks against China, so that
their accusations collapse onto themselves.
The article was compiled by
Global Times reporters Li Qingqing and Yan Yunming based on an interview with
Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations, China
Foreign Affairs University. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn
Source:Global Times
On February 2, 2020, in the
official room team of Liuchi Village, Shadi Township, Enshi City, Hubei
Province, in order to support the front line of epidemic resistance, villagers in
Liuchi Village spontaneously organized picking vegetables for the anti-epidemic
medical staff and shipped to Enshi Prefecture Central hospital. (Photo by Yan
Peng from People’s Daily Online)
US seeks selfish gains as China goes all out to curtail coronavirus spread
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