When Wuhan first discovered corona-virus, first speculation linking it to bats (SARS example), was understandable. That the government was cautious not to cause panic was also understandable. (Allegedly, the local government enforced early censorship to suppress information about the corona-virus, and the dangers it poses to public health.) The West media’s critic and condemnation on the Chinese government out of habit was also understandable. But it was absolutely wrong from facts and hindsight: The Chinese government did so correctly in containing the disease and buying time for the rest of the world. In contrast, the West media had influenced their governments in reacting too slowly to the pandemic. The government leaders and their officials ought to make the right and fast decisions to protect their citizens no matter what the media said. Here, we assume that the governments did not coerce or feed the media what the governments want the media to say. If they did, it would be not only wrong but also a sin!
Everyone is now affected by the COVID-19 corona-virus and many people have followed the news on a daily basis. However, not everyone has noticed that some media and their governments (certain politicians) have politicized the COVID-19. That is absolutely wrong! COVID-19 caused a pandemic disease against the human race. Every human must unite to work together to fight the spreading virus, not blaming each other. In human history, we have endured many pandemic diseases, such as plague, smallpox, HIV/AIDS, SARS, etc. When a child or family member contracted an infectious disease and brought it home, would the family blame the child or should they immediately seek the cure? I would think the family would immediately focus on finding a cure! So, it is obviously wrong for any politician to politicize the current pandemic virus, isn’t it?!
When the COVID-19 virus was first discovered in Wuhan city in China, the Chinese government was caught off guard. The local government may have delayed a swift action because of 'lack of precise information', 'concern for causing citizens to panic' or 'incapable of determining a correct action', however, the delay was only a few days. The central government made swift decision to close down the entire Wuhan City, a city of 14 million people as a center of commerce, transportation and manufacturing. We can be certain that the decision was hard to make, judging on the very different reactions expressed and opposite decisions made today by government leaders in many other countries regarding the COVID-19 attack. In the United States, there are governors who want to quarantine their cities and some reject such an idea.
What was horrible was that some U.S. media had kept harsh criticism on China when she was struggling in dealing with the COVID-19. The flag of Human Rights was immediately raised: “Closing down Wuhan city is violating human rights!”- When China was rushed to construct thousand-bed hospitals to anticipate the rapid increase of corona-virus patients. We also heard: “this is forced labor, putting workers' lives in danger.” “The new hospitals look like concentration camp.” “Are they really volunteer medical professionals coming to aid Wuhan?” China had no time nor energy to worry about these smears based on human rights accusations, she quickly built a few large hospitals within ten days. China organized thousands of medical doctors and nurses to support Wuhan, not only working there but working 7/24 having only one break a day to get out of their protective garment suit equipped with diapers. How could the external media without eye-witnessing reporters there write such horrible smearing remarks?!
Wall Street Journal published an article, headlined, “China is Asian sick man”. Secretary of State, Pompeo, defended it as freedom of speech. Do we Americans cherish such discriminatory speech?! Calling COVID-19 Chinese virus is so obvious an intent to politicize the corona-virus pandemic. (At least eight strains of the corona-virus are creating a trail of death and disease around the world that scientists are diligently tracking their genetic identifiers.) President Trump had later made effort to clarify his statements, but the damage was done. The anti-Asian crime and discriminatory acts skyrocketed. Congress began to speak out against discrimination towards Asian Americans. When China was struggling with COVID-19 in January and warned the world, what did our government do? Congress was focused on impeachment, the entire Senate was locked up weeks not for potential pandemic prevention but on impeachment resolution. The Administration would let the precious month or many weeks passing by doing nothing to prepare ‘testing’ (essential for accounting and control of number of patients) and ‘strengthening hospital facilities’ (essential to deal with pandemic explosion).
On ‘Human Rights’, despite of the improvements that are observable over the past seven decades, the West has always been targeting against China. China claims that the most important human right is to live above poverty with dignity. She has been focused on lifting her hundreds of millions of citizens above poverty. Tibetans, Xinjiang Uyghurs and millions of western Chinese now live better lives than ever before. Do they worry about infiltration of extreme Islamism and illegal immigrants crossing their borders? Sure they do, just think about the wall we built along the Mexican border! China offers job and skill training centers in Mongolia, Xinjiang, and Qinghai provinces, our media call them concentration camps in the name of Human Rights. What are our real purposes?
COVID-19 is a human disaster but together we will overcome it. China was lucky with her swift and decisive actions to have contained the pandemic disease. The whole world should be humble to learn from China’s experience, to collaborate to develop the vaccine and to share information to prevent future pandemics. COVID-19 has given us a learning lesson on Human Rights. We need to recognize human rights as a first person subject not a third person topic. Chinese medical professionals from all over the country went to Wuhan to fight the COVID-19 was their right to do so and their right to complain about human rights violation if any, not for our media to judge without evidence. Evidence is not from political defectors invited by ambitious American politicians to testify. Evidence is from investigative reporters who live there among the Chinese.
At present, COVID-19 is still spreading. When Rhode Island police hunts New Yorkers who rush into Rhode Island (the National Guard will help them conduct house-to-house searches to find people who traveled from New York and demand 14 days of self-quarantine.), who is violating who’s human rights or constitutional rights? When liberal Democrats (Jerry Nadler, D-NY and Karen Bass, D-CA) demand Department of Justice to release as many as possible prisoners (because of COVID-19’s threat), whose human rights they are trying to protect and whose human rights they are trying to destroy? Closing all restaurants not permitting sit-down diners, aren’t we violating human rights as well as protecting human rights?
Now schools, sports events and many big events are closed or turning to online activities, why aren’t stock markets not closed? The wild crushing of stock markets are causing more panic perhaps than the virus itself, why didn’t government shut it down? Whose rights are we protecting?
COVID-19 gave humans an opportunity to learn and to reflect, human rights are not absolute rights. As first person, we can not just think for our own rights, there must be compromises (such as Rhode-Islanders versus New-Yorkers). As third person, we can not so liberally judging others for violating human rights or not (prisoners’ human rights versus citizens’ human rights). One noticed that the Amnesty International recently made a statement (third party comment): “Human Rights Violations hinder responses to health emergency and undercut their efficiency.” I would rather say: “Sacrificing human rights helps health emergency situation and improves efficiency in combating pandemic disease.” This is what COVID-19 has taught us on Human Rights!
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