By Hong Tian
In late December of 2019, a new type of pneumonia emerged in Wuhan, China. In the beginning, it was regarded and treated as a common infection. However, when more than a dozen of the same cases occurred, doctors who had previous experience fighting the SARS plague suspected it was a new serious infectious disease. Dr. Zhang Dingyu from Jinyintan Hospital of Wuhan and Dr. Zhang Jixian from the Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Medicine of Hubei Province soon reported the seriousness of the problem to authorities after treating several such patients. They made important contributions to preventing the spread of the epidemic. However, because it was difficult to decide whether this new infectious disease can be transmitted from human to human, and the risk of this disease has not yet been recognized by some other doctors, early effective measures were not taken to prevent the spread of the epidemic on time. This time, in contrast to the SARS outbreak 17 years ago, Chinese scientists quickly identified a new type of coronavirus, now named as COVID-19, as the cause of the disease. They sequenced its genome within one week, developed and mass-produced test kits, and sent the kits to all parts of China. On January 20, when Prof. Zhong Nanshan confirmed that the new virus can be transmitted from human to human, the Chinese government immediately took decisive measures to prevent the spread of the virus while managing actively to treat the patients. All of the deployments were launched in an orderly way within one month.
From the disease outbreak until now, China has been running like a huge machine efficiently and orderly in the last two months. President Xi Jinping supervises the whole process directly involving governments at different levels and several stakeholders. The governments and the people, the army and the masses, different regions, different hospitals united and cooperated to fight the disease. Different areas of the country have been managed one by one as different “grids”, while the whole country is supervised as a “carpet” without any section left behind. A country with more than a billion people has been incited, organized, and has acted so efficiently. I do not know of another country that can do the same thing.
This miracle can happen in China because China’s efficient and unified political system can direct government orders very efficiently across the country in a short time. Thus, all people in the country can partake in the organization of policy structure very well. Additionally, it also benefits from the unshakable belief of China’s ruling party and government that people’s safety and health are the priority above any other issues. This belief can inspire great enthusiasm and encourage citizens to work hard. This political advantage is very important for a big country like China, and it is valuable for dealing with emergencies and ensuring the safety of the whole nation.
With efficient mobilization and organization, advanced scientific research and technology, and dedication to the work of the individuals, Chinese people have made remarkable achievements in the fight against the epidemic. The identification of the virus, the determination of gene sequence, the mass production and application of detection kits allowed for the need to develop efficient scientific high-tech products and increase production capacity. Within only ten days, two new hospitals, Huoshenshan Hospital and Leishenshan Hospital were built in Wuhan and the severe patients were transferred to these hospitals for further treatments. To isolate and treat suspected patients, simple and efficient shelter-style hospitals were also constructed in Wuhan. Learning from the experience of beating the SARS epidemic, Xiaotangshan-style hospitals were constructed all over the country to treat the patients. All these achievements are the fruits of the hard work of the constructors, the dedication of the doctors and nurses, and the cooperation and support between the government and the people, between the army and the masses. To prevent the spread of the virus, Wuhan was also sealed off in late January. To provide spiritual and material support, corporations, institutions, non-governmental organizations and individuals all over the country donated money and resources, as well as cheer for the people of Wuhan. Chinese all over the world have also taken actions to support the people of Wuhan and the people of China to beat the virus. The governments and people of many countries have also supported China in various ways to beat the epidemic. All these will be remembered by Chinese people and leave a touching record in history.
After the outbreak of the new virus-caused epidemic, the Chinese government promptly informed the world and made the relevant information public, important steps to curb the spread of the virus around the world and avoid casualties and property losses in other countries. On February 3, 2020, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, pointed out that China has responded forcefully and effectively to the disease, firmly seized the epicentre of the outbreak and the source of the virus. He said that China is committed to protecting its people and preventing the spread of the virus to other countries, which demonstrates and highlights China’s responsibility, confidence and ability. His conclusion is objective and fair. Thanks to the joint efforts of China and other countries, the new virus has not spread more seriously internationally and did not cause serious consequences until the present.
All the amazing “miracles” happening in China should be known by the people all over the world. Glory belongs to the great China, and also belongs to the whole world!
Except for those who ignore the facts, people in most of the countries and regions appreciate the efforts and success of the Chinese government and people. After all, justice is in the hearts of the people, and the malicious smear of some countries and individuals can only blind those who do not know the truth for a while but cannot cover up the truth forever. Some people who make up stories are not considering how to help the Chinese people fight the epidemic, but are looking for every opportunity to attack the Chinese government. Except to show their selfishness and smallness, what benefit can negative talk bring to others or themselves? Therefore, the outbreak of this disease is like a mirror, which can reflect the friends of the Chinese people and those who are malicious and selfish.
Thanks to the united efforts of the Chinese government and people, the spread of virus COVID-19 has been effectively curbed and deaths caused by the epidemic have been controlled at a very low level. Compared with the consequences of the H1N1 bird flu in 2009, and the current flu outbreak in the United States, China’s effective control of the epidemic caused by such a rapidly spreading new virus is exemplary. Although the virus has not been completely eradicated, deaths may still occur. The large-scale spread of the virus, especially the tragedy of mass deaths can be largely avoided. At the time of writing this article, outside Hubei province, the number of new patients in China has declined for eight consecutive days, and it was less than five hundred patients per day in the recent three days. Now, the screening of specific drugs, vaccine development and so on have proceeded in an orderly manner in China. Under the strong measures taken by the Chinese government, with the continuous improvement of medical methods and environmental factors, it can be believed that the epidemic will soon disappear in the near future.
The outbreak of the disease undoubtedly harms current China’s economic development, especially on the catering, tourism and some manufacturing industries. The Chinese government has taken measures in fiscal, monetary, financial and other fields to reduce the financial burden of relevant enterprises and help them to tide over the difficulties. On the other hand, the government has promoted the development of scientific research related to the fight against the epidemic, thus opening up new growth points for economic development.
In terms of China’s long-term economic development, this epidemic outbreak is only a grain of sand in the vast river, which will not cause significant adverse effects. The industry affected by the epidemic will surely recover and return to the road of development after the epidemic. The epidemic outbreak offered health-related industries a new opportunity for growth. Considering the economic strength of China as the world’s second-largest economy, and considering the purchasing power of China as the market with the most potentiality, the upward momentum of Chinese economic development will not change because of the epidemic, the importance of China to the world economy will not be weakened because of the virus. This is the consensus of most of the insightful people, which will not be changed by the lamentations that are deliberately negative about China.
As with SARS, the new virus COVID-19 likely came from wild animals. After these two painful lessons, it may be a conscious decision to halt the consumption of wild animals. The Chinese government has now suspended all wildlife trade. It is strongly expected that the rules will be enforced for the long term and indeterminately.
The epidemic outbreak is like a war without smoke. The process of fighting the disease is not only a response to sudden natural disasters but also a test of China’s ability to mobilize and organize its people in response to possible biological or other forms of warfare. As China has been in a peaceful condition for a long time, fighting the epidemic can strengthen the people’s confidence, and can also examine any possible shortcomings and correct them.
During the long and splendid course of civilization, the Chinese people have faced countless challenges, and finally conquered them one by one. They have advanced step by step, from one glory to another new glory, from greatness to another new greatness. The outbreak of this epidemic is only another obstacle on their way forward. With the united efforts of the Chinese government and people, this challenge can certainly be overcome, and will certainly be overcome soon.