Solidarity, not scapegoating, the way out of pandemic

Although it has been 76 years since World War II was over, the global village has once stepped again into huge turmoil. Unlike the prior war, there is no fire and smoke, with COVID-19, the cause of the pandemic, acting as the massive weaponry. During WWII, the death toll was about 70 million, while the injured numbered 130 million in total. According the WHO, the pandemic has caused more than 4 million deaths and 200 million confirmed cases up to now.

When Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, was hit hard by the COVID-19 outbreak last year, what was the attitude of the US toward the virus? Appeasement, unsurprisingly. When China warned the world about the contagious disease, the US put a travel ban on China first, took pleasure in the damage in China, and did nothing to prevent the pandemic. When China succeeded in the fight against COVID-19 by lockdowns, social distancing, masking up and actively saving lives, what had the US been doing at that time? A big flu was the answer to its people. When more than 1 billion vaccine doses were dispatched to more than 100 countries by China, what did the US do? It kept vaccines for itself until doses expired rather than donating even one dose to other countries. Up to now, the death toll in the US is over 616,000, more than double the 291,754 deaths during World War II, and 110 times more than the 5,600 COVID-19 deaths in China. If a death toll can be an evaluation of human rights, the beacon ignited by the 616,000 who unwillingly departed this world should absolutely be the most brilliant supernova in the cosmos.

It’s a great shame to accept such a huge failure as the sole hegemonic superpower. It has tried to scapegoat China by shifting attention to the virus origin. Facing its bankrupt lab leak theory, it has tried to politicize the virus issue by hijacking the WHO and pressuring the EU and other countries to fall in line. Even so, it has attempted all kinds of dirty maneuvers against Chinese ranging from sanctions for officials, enterprises and individuals to political intimidation, from sabotaging regional peace to displays of military muscle, from economic decoupling to science and technology embargoes, and so much more.

China has been the imaginary enemy of the US ever since the collapse of the Soviet Union. From the position of power, the deep hatred toward China is a mixture of racism, ideological discrimination and deep dread of losing absolute ruling power around the globe. Compared to the strong economic and social resilience of China, the terribly high inflation, extreme polarization, chronic racism and huge gap between rich and poor, US can hardly claim superiority over China anymore.

The pandemic is a great threat to all mankind. While China leads in fighting COVID-19, it is the US who has caused the entire globe to lag behind in succeeding in this epic war. If there were more conscientious politicians in the US, they should have acknowledged the importance of better managing one's own affairs rather than interfering in those of others.

China always knows that safeguarding its own people is the core interest and far more urgent cause, compared to competing with some strange, imaginary concepts fabricated by some malicious foreign politicians.

The openness to cooperation and pursuit of stability will pave the way out of the pandemic toward the success in this new war. China will resolutely insist on its second centenary aim toward building a strong and modernized socialist country.

The author is a reader of China Daily.

The opinions expressed here are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of China Daily and China Daily website.

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