Outbreak 'no excuse' for prejudice

The novel coronavirus should not be weaponized as "an excuse" for ignorant people to be openly racist, says a spokesman for the London Chinatown Chinese Association, who noted that while businesses in Chinatown have experienced a dip, he is confident trade will bounce back.

Lawrence Lee said there are a growing number of cases in which Chinese have been the victims of prejudice during the virus outbreak, branding such instances as completely unacceptable.

"It's just a disease that happened in China; it's not Chinese that are carrying the disease. They are totally two different issues, and the virus should not give ignorant people the excuse to express their racial hatred," he said.

The novel coronavirus, which was first discovered in the Chinese city of Wuhan, has spread to 24 other countries, and the wider outbreak has sparked increasing hostility and prejudice directed by some people against ethnic Chinese.

Deng Hansheng, a lawyer who works in London Chinatown, said he was dumbfounded and felt very uncomfortable on his way to work last Thursday morning－on a crammed train to London, seats next to him remained unoccupied, as passengers did not want to sit beside him out of apparent fear over the virus.

"This is just utterly ridiculous," Deng said. "I have lived in London for decades, and if I were to be a virus carrier, it is likely that people in the whole carriage have the same level of risk, not because my of East Asian-looking appearance."

It's usually common to see youngsters in Chinatown wearing face masks. They do so to protect their respiratory tracts from pollution and to ward off potential viral infections, as well as to prevent the possible spread of any pathogens they might be carrying.

However, Lee said he has noticed there are now fewer people wearing face masks in the district during the virus outbreak out of fear of becoming a target of abuse.

"We are quite used to seeing people wear masks in the streets of Chinatown for various reasons," he said. "But a lot of Western people might find it odd and see the wearer as a potential carrier.

This is happening due to lack of knowledge, said Lee, who urges the UK government to educate people about virus-protection measures.

Prejudice connected to the virus has also affected businesses in Chinatown, with many restaurants reporting drops in revenue of between 20 and 50 percent, after the UK confirmed its first two cases of the novel coronavirus. Fears also increased after the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a global health emergency.

As of Tuesday, there are eight people infected with the novel coronavirus in Britain.