Recently, Professor Cynthia Sanborn from Pacific University (UP) shared with me an article of hers, entitled “China changes the narrative: From origin to the solution of the pandemic? Peru - China relations could be strengthened”. As mentioned in her article, a few months ago, the world was watching China's fight against the epidemic. Today, Peru is also in a deep crisis and the world faces a common enemy. Here, I would like to respond to some points raised by Professor Sanborn. I believe that in the face of common challenges, we all need mutual understanding and support.
Control of the Covid-19 and the differences between countries
In January 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in Wuhan, China. On January 23, 2020, Wuhan, a large city with a population of 10 million, was quarantined on the eve of the Spring Festival, a traditional Chinese holiday. In the following two months, the Chinese people experienced an arduous fight against Covid-19. Wuhan, along with other cities and towns, large or small, had entered the quarantine state. Almost all economic activities were suspended except the supply of food and essential materials for daily life. Although China had lived through the SARS outbreak in 2003, for a quarantine order as strict as this one, there was no precedent. Now looking back, just due to the implementation of strict isolation, China has come to control the spread of the virus in two months and has achieved victory in the first phase of the epidemic fight.
However, although the WHO has already declared the situation an international public health emergency due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 that emerged in China on January 30, two months later, it has still spread throughout the world. If we consider the wide spread of COVID-19 through Europe and the United States as the second wave of the outbreak, in Latin America it will be the third. Without specific drugs or vaccines, observing the exemplary acts of control in countries such as China, South Korea and Germany, or the less celebrated in countries such as Italy and the United States, we can conclude that quarantine measures and the mandatory use of masks are effective in controlling the spread of the virus, regardless of the political system and culture of the country. In short, when the government and the people realize the strong contagiousness of the Covid-19 and the threat to human life, they would have no other option but to adopt quarantine measures and put on the masks in a mandatory manner; on the contrary, it would result in an infection on an even larger scale and a great loss of human life.
Unlike the situation in the United States, according to Professor Sanborn and other Peruvian friends, the Peruvian government is one of the first countries in Latin America to implement the policy of isolation. However, due to limited economic conditions, a part of the Peruvian people has been affected by living conditions and forms of income, the inability to strictly comply with quarantine measures has caused the number of infected people to continue to increase; In particular, some industries have had to resume work to support basic economic activities now that the epidemic is not fully under control. Peru is foreseeable facing a severe test in the present and in the near future.
Chinese donations and teaching the Chinese experience in fighting the epidemic
In her article, Professor Sanborn talks about China's contribution to more than 100 countries in the world, including Peru and other Latin American countries, in anti-epidemic materials. China has sent medical teams to dozens of countries to help them fight COVID-19. Professor Sanborn specifically mentions that "China's support is not limited to its geopolitical allies." In fact, even the United States, which currently has a strained relationship with China, has been offered aid by China. Some of the donations come from the government, others from companies and civil society. Professor Sanborn wants to know the exact amount of the donations, but given the Chinese people are making donations at different levels, it is difficult to collect all the data. For example, the Tsinghua University has made several donations to Chile, Italy, the United States, among other countries; Chinese companies in Latin America have done the same under the organization of embassies; there are also individual donations that are not registered by embassies.
In fact, when China was suffering the worst of the epidemic, it received donations from many friendly countries of the world, such as South Korea, Japan, Russia, Italy, among many. Japan put a very nice verse - "Although the hills and streams distinguish us, the moon and the wind share our kind hearts" - on the donated materials. Professor Sanborn also sent us a video to encourage and support the Chinese people, for which we are very excited. China is a country that has greatly appreciated labels in its 5,000 years of civilization. As two old Chinese sayings have said, “give a plum for a peach”, and “receive drops of water when necessary, and I will return the kindness with a spring” - both literally mean “return a favor with another”. When we were in difficulties, we received donations from many friendly countries of the world; When they are affected by the epidemic, it is time for us to return the favor. Of course, China's donations and support are not limited to the countries that have helped us, we are ready to help the countries that need the help, as long as the conditions allow.
Sharing the Chinese experience of fighting the epidemic is a way of expressing the friendly feelings of the Chinese people towards friends around the world. In the event of a new virus outbreak, without specific drugs or vaccines, many Chinese doctors risked their lives to save COVID-19 patients in Wuhan and across the country. The accumulated experience in such dangerous and difficult conditions is a treasure for China and for the world. Because the epidemic has spread to different countries in succession, Chinese doctors have managed to transmit their experiences to the rest of the world. I think they are valuable for global health. In the last two months, the Latin American Center of the Tsinghua University, has organized some webinars between the experts of the best hospital in China and the medical experts of Chile. Based on online interactions and comments after the meeting, there is no doubt that the experiences of Chinese doctors are useful for the fight against epidemics in Chile.
Under these circumstances, some countries have said that China is doing "virus diplomacy", calling the coronavirus the "Chinese virus." However, the Chinese people have our own values and we insist on what is right and noble. We will not be affected by these baseless accusations. The Latin America Center of Tsinghua University has been following the situation in Peru through the Peruvian media. I am happy to see that in general, the Peruvian people maintain a positive attitude towards China.
On "Made in China," China's role in the pandemic, and the absence of US leadership,
Professor Sanborn mentioned China's production capabilities, and China's role in sourcing Covid-19 prevention materials. I think that in this case a more detailed analysis is necessary. First, in the course of globalization in the past three to four decades, China's manufacturing industry has attracted a large number of foreign companies due to low cost and high efficiency of labor. At the same time, domestic companies have also developed very well, making China the global manufacturing center. This is the reason why China can provide medical devices to the world, by virtue of its efficient manufacturing capacity in the circumstances of the virus spreading around the world.
However, the rapid spread of the pandemic has been unexpected by many countries. On the one hand, the demand for prevention materials is so great and so urgent that China's production was insufficient at first; Fortunately, China has managed to control the epidemic in time, so it has managed to meet global demand; On the other hand, as mentioned before, quarantine measures are relevant in effectively controlling the epidemic situation in China, but they do not apply in all countries. For this reason, some companies that could have produced prevention materials or have quickly reestablished their production capacity, whose productions have been limited. Therefore, despite the fact that China has great manufacturing capabilities, global dependence on Chinese products only happens under a special and sudden circumstance like this.
As for China's "leadership", as Professor Sanborn has said, I think it is an acknowledgment of China's role in fighting the epidemic. China was the country where the first COVID-19 outbreak occurred, but the Chinese government and people worked together to contain the spread of the virus as soon as possible. In this process, China's work was celebrated by the WHO. So when the Covid-19 has spread to the rest of the world, many countries want to learn from China's experiences. On the other hand, China, with a traditional virtue of being helpful, is willing to share experiences with the world. With powerful and efficient manufacturing capacity, China has largely supplied anti-epidemic materials to the world. Therefore, it has played an important role in this process.
The United States, a country that has the highest level of science and technology, and the most comprehensive public health system, which many countries in the world hoped could lead the anti-epidemic process, as well as Chinese scientists, who also wanted to collaborate with them initially, to develop the anti-coronavirus vaccine. However, the US government ignored the advice of scientists in their country, which resulted in a total lack of control of the epidemic, making the United States the country with the most confirmed cases in the world. Under this circumstance, the absence of American leadership is true fact.
On the post-pandemic world, the Chinese model and the relations between China and Peru
COVID-19 is a common enemy of all the peoples of the world. No country can face it alone or stay away. Humans seem vulnerable to this virus. "The international community must work in solidarity to overcome it," said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director General. However, we are sorry to see that some countries that have not been able to deal with the epidemic quickly and effectively are blaming others, at a time so crucial that the world needs solidarity more than ever; On the other hand, there are also accusations against other countries for ideological and cultural differences. Faced with this situation, we have to recognize that the post-pandemic world will be more complicated, and that a part of international relations is deteriorating even more. However, we remain convinced that sincere contacts between people and mutual aid between countries in the midst of difficulties, will strengthen interpersonal ties and increase trust and friendship with each other.
Three decades have passed since the beginning of reform and opening-up in China. This country has found its own path of development in the trend of globalization.The world has seenitas a "Chinese model." We know that this model fits with Chinese values, so that the Chinese people have gone from poverty to prosperity.However, given the differences in the current situation, development conditions and historical trajectory, each country has the right to choose its own path. China will never deliberately export its model to other countries, as Professor Sanborn has said. We will only explain to you the ideas and principles of the Chinese model, to resolve the misunderstandings caused by political and cultural differences.
Peru has maintained good economic, commercial and diplomatic relations with China. Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, the two countries had signed a Belt and Road memorandum of understanding; During the epidemic, China and Peru have maintained trust and supported each other, which shows that despite the differences between us, we can collaborate and win together.
Currently, the situation in Peru is serious. The country is resuming productions while continuing to fight COVID-19, therefore it is experiencing great pressure.
Chinese companies in Peru are also preparing for the resumption of production, under the anti-epidemic regulations of the Peruvian government. The Latin America Center of Tsinghua University is willing to collaborate with Pacific University (UP), in order to provide proposals on how to resume economic activities safely. I am convinced that mutual trust and friendship between both countries are strengthening as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Author:Prof. Taotao Chen, director of Tsinghua University Latin America Center
