Experts say Beijing’s ‘cordon sanitaire’ approach to preventing a pandemic could harm more than help
China is under increasing pressure to show that its disease control system is adequately coping with the outbreak of a deadly new coronavirus, as its confirmed cases rises above 4,000 and over 100 killed by the pneumonia-like disease.
Chinese officials have in recent days admitted shortcomings in their management of the outbreak, raising concerns of a possible global pandemic despite Beijing’s bests efforts to lockdown cities in Hubei province, including the reputed epicenter of the disease.
Zhou Xianwang, the mayor of Wuhan, a Chinese mega-city of 11 million people, even offered to resign on Monday after conceding that the city government’s disclosure of information had been “unsatisfactory.”
Despite a lack of reliable data about the still poorly understood coronavirus and a means of large-scale testing for it, officials in Wuhan had assured citizens that the virus was not widely transmissible after it was initially identified on January 10.
Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.
China is under increasing pressure to show that its disease control system is adequately coping with the outbreak of a deadly new coronavirus, as its confirmed cases rises above 4,000 and over 100 killed by the pneumonia-like disease.
Chinese officials have in recent days admitted shortcomings in their management of the outbreak, raising concerns of a possible global pandemic despite Beijing’s bests efforts to lockdown cities in Hubei province, including the reputed epicenter of the disease.
Zhou Xianwang, the mayor of Wuhan, a Chinese mega-city of 11 million people, even offered to resign on Monday after conceding that the city government’s disclosure of information had been “unsatisfactory.”
Despite a lack of reliable data about the still poorly understood coronavirus and a means of large-scale testing for it, officials in Wuhan had assured citizens that the virus was not widely transmissible after it was initially identified on January 10.
Read the full story at Asia Times.
