Why the U.S. has become the country worst hit by COVID-19
By Zamir
Ahmed Awan
A
negative approach, delayed actions, and incorrect policies resulted in making
the U.S. the country that has been worst hit by the COVID-19 outbreak in the
world. The U.S. has over 960,000 confirmed cases and 54,000 dead as of April
26, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
These
figures are not very precise, as the number of tests that have been conducted
is limited. It is beyond the capacity of even the developed world to test every
single individual, let alone the developing world and underdeveloped countries.
The pandemic has already become a terrible threat to humankind. Some countries
in Europe have already passed the peak, and the trend of new infections is
already on the decline. But the U.S. has not reached this point yet. In Asia
and Africa, the pandemic is still in its initial stages. Some experts are
predicting a frightening future.
Although
the Trump administration has recently taken good initiatives, the delay has
already caused enormous damage. Timely decisions and the correct policies might
have prevented a lot of the suffering. A 2 trillion-dollar package is a very
positive step, and other measures have been encouraging. The U.S. is one of the
largest economies, the wealthiest nation, and most developed and advanced in
science and technology. The U.S. can overcome the epidemic, but it must bear a
high cost to do so.
The
Chinese government and Chinese people have been brave as they took on this
formidable task. From the very beginning of the fight against the outbreak,
they have put people’s lives and health first. They acted according to the
overall principle of shoring up confidence, strengthening unity, ensuring
science-based control and treatment, and imposed targeted measures. China
mobilized the entire nation, set up collective control and treatment
mechanisms, and acted with openness and transparency. China has put up a
strenuous struggle and made tremendous sacrifices. Now, the situation in China
is under control, and life and economic activity are gradually being resumed.
Over the
last few months, China has been struggling to overcome the epidemic and focused
on its goal of saving human beings and containing the virus. China has
concentrated all its energies into fighting against COVID-19. The country
mobilized all its national resources, and with the support of the public,
finally controlled the coronavirus outbreak.
The
Trump administration failed to help out its allies in their most challenging
moments, when Italy, France, UK, Spain, and Germany were facing a severe
threat. If the U.S. had helped its allies from the beginning, it might not have
spread so widely or even reached the U.S.
In fact,
when China was suffering from the outbreak, the U.S. was overly engaged in
scoring political points by bashing China, criticizing its draconian and
authoritative laws, accusing it of not respecting human rights and personal
freedom, and generally trying to defame the country. But China ignored pressure
from the outside world and focused only on eliminating the epidemic.
The U.S.
government wasted time, ignored the suffering of the Chinese people and assumed
that it would never happen to them. They were relaxed and, to some extent, some
U.S. politicians were happy with the loss of human lives and the economic
damage China was suffering. Instead, China recovered, and a stable normal
situation has almost returned.
The U.S.
is now facing enormous challenges, especially as it has now become the
worst-hit country. During the recent pandemic, “China-Fever” was very evident
in the U.S. Had it spent less time on anti-China sentiments and more on
controlling the pandemic, the situation might be different.
Zamir Ahmed Awan is a senior
fellow with the Center for China and Globalization (CCG) and a sinologist at
the National University of Sciences and Technology in Pakistan. E-mail:
awanzamir@yahoo.com
Source:People’s Daily Online
Why the U.S. has become the country worst hit by COVID-19
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