#Interview
Uyghur exile in Sweden learns his parents are sentenced to 18 years in prison
(10-Jan) Haimiti Tuogeluke (also known as Tughluq Hemit) has lived in Sweden for nine years and holds a permanent residence permit. His former schoolmate in Xinjiang informed him that his parents, both in their sixties, had just been sentenced to 18 years imprisonment. They are retirees who used to work in the Ili Prefecture. This is his interview with Radio France Internationale (RFI).
Tuogeluke: Ever since I left Xinjiang in 2019 to seek political asylum in Sweden, I have not returned to China. My parents travelled to Turkey in 2014 and we met up there. After they returned to Xinjiang, they were sent to a re-education camp on Jan 27, 2017. Soon after, they also took my sister who was working for the Bank of Urumqi at the time. I completely lost contact with them. My schoolmate called me yesterday and said that my parents were sentenced to 18 years imprisonment and that their health was suffering.
RFI: What did the Chinese authorities charge them with? What did they do before retirement?
Tuogeluke: My father, Haimiti Abudureheman, was born in May 1954. He was a manager of the Posts and Telecommunications Bureau in Ili. My mother, Shaadaiti Bawudun, was born in July 1956. She worked in a restaurant in Ghulja County in Ili. They were never involved in politics. They were prosecuted solely because they met with me when I was exiled in Sweden. The authorities condemn me for participating in political activities.
FRI: What kind of political activities did you participate in?
Tuogeluke: I joined demonstrations, most notably on the memorial day for the Urumqi 5 July Incident and on the National Day of the People's Republic of China.
Mr. Dilxat Raxit, the spokesman for the World Uyghur Congress, commented, “Facing international criticism, the Chinese government responded by feigning the closure of re-education camps and release of detainees. According to our information sources, the Chinese government plans to heavily punish Uyghurs brainwashed in re-education camps. After being tortured in re-education camps, they would be sent to prison. It is a lie that they are being released gradually.”
Source: rfi
https://bit.ly/2NdwrdK
#Xinjiang #Uyghurs
Uyghur exile in Sweden learns his parents are sentenced to 18 years in prison
(10-Jan) Haimiti Tuogeluke (also known as Tughluq Hemit) has lived in Sweden for nine years and holds a permanent residence permit. His former schoolmate in Xinjiang informed him that his parents, both in their sixties, had just been sentenced to 18 years imprisonment. They are retirees who used to work in the Ili Prefecture. This is his interview with Radio France Internationale (RFI).
Tuogeluke: Ever since I left Xinjiang in 2019 to seek political asylum in Sweden, I have not returned to China. My parents travelled to Turkey in 2014 and we met up there. After they returned to Xinjiang, they were sent to a re-education camp on Jan 27, 2017. Soon after, they also took my sister who was working for the Bank of Urumqi at the time. I completely lost contact with them. My schoolmate called me yesterday and said that my parents were sentenced to 18 years imprisonment and that their health was suffering.
RFI: What did the Chinese authorities charge them with? What did they do before retirement?
Tuogeluke: My father, Haimiti Abudureheman, was born in May 1954. He was a manager of the Posts and Telecommunications Bureau in Ili. My mother, Shaadaiti Bawudun, was born in July 1956. She worked in a restaurant in Ghulja County in Ili. They were never involved in politics. They were prosecuted solely because they met with me when I was exiled in Sweden. The authorities condemn me for participating in political activities.
FRI: What kind of political activities did you participate in?
Tuogeluke: I joined demonstrations, most notably on the memorial day for the Urumqi 5 July Incident and on the National Day of the People's Republic of China.
Mr. Dilxat Raxit, the spokesman for the World Uyghur Congress, commented, “Facing international criticism, the Chinese government responded by feigning the closure of re-education camps and release of detainees. According to our information sources, the Chinese government plans to heavily punish Uyghurs brainwashed in re-education camps. After being tortured in re-education camps, they would be sent to prison. It is a lie that they are being released gradually.”
Source: rfi
https://bit.ly/2NdwrdK
#Xinjiang #Uyghurs
RFI
流亡瑞典維族人父母被判處18年監禁
旅居瑞典的新疆維族人托格魯克·海米提本周三被他在新疆的中學同學告知，他六十多歲的父母剛剛被當局判處18年的監禁，他父母是伊利地區的政府機……
Germany confirms three further cases of Wuhan Pneumonia, adding to a total of 4 confirmed cases
Source: DW
#ChinaPneumonia #GlobalOutbreak #Germany
Source: DW
#ChinaPneumonia #GlobalOutbreak #Germany
The Lancet : Study of 2019-nCov Preliminary
Currently very little is known about the fatal 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). A recent study done with data collected up to 2 January on 41 patients with laboratory-confirmed 2019-nCoV showed that:
1. Signs and symptoms greatly resemble the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus of 2003 - the SARS epidemic infected 8,098 people, causing 774 deaths across 17 countries.
2. Of those 41 patients, 6 have died, a high mortality rate of 15%.
3. The time between hospital admission and development of severe symptoms can be as short as 2 days - severe symptoms require intensive care and oxygen therapy.
4. Most 2019-nCoV patients have fever, dry cough and shortness of breath, while upper airway symptoms such as runny nose or sore throat were not common. Intestinal symptoms such as diarrhoea were rarely seen, whereas a quarter of SARS patients had diarrhoea.
5. So far no antiviral treatment has been proven effective.
6. It is unknown at this stage whether 2019-nCoV can be transmitted via faeces or urine.
7. 14 out of the 41 (34%) patients did not have direct exposure to the Huanan seafood market, including some of the earliest patients.
Despite being able to show the potential danger of the 2019-nCoV, the authors have also pointed out that many aspects of 2019-nCoV remain poorly understood, including its origin and mode of transmission.
In their study they emphasised concerns that the 2019-nCoV has acquired the ability for efficient human transmission. This lack of knowledge has increased the difficulty of identifying and tackling the key factors of transmission, and highlights the need for transparency from the Chinese government.
Lastly the fact that 34% of the study cohort did not have links to the seafood market casts doubt on it being the only source of outbreak, once again calling into question the reliability of information from the Chinese government.
Please watch further updates on findings as the outbreak is evolving rapidly.
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30183-5/fulltext#seccestitle170 #ChinesePneumonia
Currently very little is known about the fatal 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). A recent study done with data collected up to 2 January on 41 patients with laboratory-confirmed 2019-nCoV showed that:
1. Signs and symptoms greatly resemble the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus of 2003 - the SARS epidemic infected 8,098 people, causing 774 deaths across 17 countries.
2. Of those 41 patients, 6 have died, a high mortality rate of 15%.
3. The time between hospital admission and development of severe symptoms can be as short as 2 days - severe symptoms require intensive care and oxygen therapy.
4. Most 2019-nCoV patients have fever, dry cough and shortness of breath, while upper airway symptoms such as runny nose or sore throat were not common. Intestinal symptoms such as diarrhoea were rarely seen, whereas a quarter of SARS patients had diarrhoea.
5. So far no antiviral treatment has been proven effective.
6. It is unknown at this stage whether 2019-nCoV can be transmitted via faeces or urine.
7. 14 out of the 41 (34%) patients did not have direct exposure to the Huanan seafood market, including some of the earliest patients.
Despite being able to show the potential danger of the 2019-nCoV, the authors have also pointed out that many aspects of 2019-nCoV remain poorly understood, including its origin and mode of transmission.
In their study they emphasised concerns that the 2019-nCoV has acquired the ability for efficient human transmission. This lack of knowledge has increased the difficulty of identifying and tackling the key factors of transmission, and highlights the need for transparency from the Chinese government.
Lastly the fact that 34% of the study cohort did not have links to the seafood market casts doubt on it being the only source of outbreak, once again calling into question the reliability of information from the Chinese government.
Please watch further updates on findings as the outbreak is evolving rapidly.
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30183-5/fulltext#seccestitle170 #ChinesePneumonia
The Lancet
Clinical features of patients infected with 2019 novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China
The 2019-nCoV infection caused clusters of severe respiratory illness similar to severe
acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus and was associated with ICU admission and high
mortality. Major gaps in our knowledge of the origin, epidemiology, duration of human…
acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus and was associated with ICU admission and high
mortality. Major gaps in our knowledge of the origin, epidemiology, duration of human…
Significant discrepancies between officially released 2019-nCoV cases and statistically predicted cases
While some have praised the Chinese government for their transparency in releasing information with respect to the current outbreak, estimation of infections based on models developed by various academics seem to suggest otherwise. These numbers are based on data provided by Chinese officials in early January.
While the discrepancy can be partly attributed to technical difficulties in viral detection due to various reasons such as insufficient resource, the lack of symptoms in some cases and death before diagnosis, it also raises questions on whether some crucial data has been withheld by the Chinese government.
If the government is actually concealing such information, that would seriously put public safety in jeopardy. Such a huge gap of information would have greatly increased the difficulty for tracking down the outbreak origin and transmission route.
Sources and references:
1. imperial.ac.uk
2. Imperial.ac.uk
3. drive.google.com
4. SCMP
While some have praised the Chinese government for their transparency in releasing information with respect to the current outbreak, estimation of infections based on models developed by various academics seem to suggest otherwise. These numbers are based on data provided by Chinese officials in early January.
While the discrepancy can be partly attributed to technical difficulties in viral detection due to various reasons such as insufficient resource, the lack of symptoms in some cases and death before diagnosis, it also raises questions on whether some crucial data has been withheld by the Chinese government.
If the government is actually concealing such information, that would seriously put public safety in jeopardy. Such a huge gap of information would have greatly increased the difficulty for tracking down the outbreak origin and transmission route.
Sources and references:
1. imperial.ac.uk
2. Imperial.ac.uk
3. drive.google.com
4. SCMP
People Make Day Trip Between Hong Kong and China Before the Closure of High Speed and Express Rails
As the new coronavirus continues to spread from China, the Hong Kong government on January 28 finally announced the closure of West Kowloon and Hung Hom rail stations on Jamuary 30, to limit the flow of people between China and Hong Kong, despite that major cross border checkpoints like Lo Wu and Lok Ma Chau remain open.
Many people arrived at Hung Hom station in the morning of Jan 29 to either travel to China or cancel their tickets. A traveller from Shanghai said he understands the arrangement by the government and that he is not too concerned about the situation in China.
Another person is travelling to Guaungzhou, China for the day to bring masks and disinfectant products for his relatives there as he has heard those products are sold out in China. The same person said that he returned from Shenzhen, China the day before and was dissatisfied about the government's lack of strict border control. He believes that the closure of borders is too late to be effective.
Ho Pak Leung, head of the HKU Centre of Infection agreed that it is imminent to close off the borders and stop individuals from China travelling to Hong Kong. On a RTHK radio show, Ho expressed that since there is no telling how many Wuhanians are in Hong Kong at the moment, the Hong Kong government should follow the example of Macau, and deploy Police officers to hotels to isolate or deport travellers from Hubei.
source: RTHK #Jan29
As the new coronavirus continues to spread from China, the Hong Kong government on January 28 finally announced the closure of West Kowloon and Hung Hom rail stations on Jamuary 30, to limit the flow of people between China and Hong Kong, despite that major cross border checkpoints like Lo Wu and Lok Ma Chau remain open.
Many people arrived at Hung Hom station in the morning of Jan 29 to either travel to China or cancel their tickets. A traveller from Shanghai said he understands the arrangement by the government and that he is not too concerned about the situation in China.
Another person is travelling to Guaungzhou, China for the day to bring masks and disinfectant products for his relatives there as he has heard those products are sold out in China. The same person said that he returned from Shenzhen, China the day before and was dissatisfied about the government's lack of strict border control. He believes that the closure of borders is too late to be effective.
Ho Pak Leung, head of the HKU Centre of Infection agreed that it is imminent to close off the borders and stop individuals from China travelling to Hong Kong. On a RTHK radio show, Ho expressed that since there is no telling how many Wuhanians are in Hong Kong at the moment, the Hong Kong government should follow the example of Macau, and deploy Police officers to hotels to isolate or deport travellers from Hubei.
source: RTHK #Jan29
Steps to Wearing your Medical Face Mask the Right Way:
1. Wash your hands with soap and water or hand sanitizer before putting on the mask
2. Make sure the colored side faces outwards with the wired edge on top
3. Stretch and position the elastic straps around your ears
4. Press and secure the wired edge on your nose bridge
5. Pull the mask folds downwards so it covers your nose, mouth and chin
6. Pinch the wired edge so and press it firmly around your nose bridge
7. Ensure that the sides of the face mask is pressing securely against your cheek, and avoid touching the mask afterwards
8. To remove the mask, touch only the elastic straps * Folding the mask is not necessary*
9. Dispose of a used mask in a trash can with lid, then wash your hands thoroughly
#WuhanPneumonia #NewCoronavurus #GlobalOutbreak
============
Follow Us
Telegram: @guardiansofhongkong
Facebook: http://bit.ly/BeWaterHongKong
Twitter: @BeWaterHKG
Instagram: @guardiansofhk
1. Wash your hands with soap and water or hand sanitizer before putting on the mask
2. Make sure the colored side faces outwards with the wired edge on top
3. Stretch and position the elastic straps around your ears
4. Press and secure the wired edge on your nose bridge
5. Pull the mask folds downwards so it covers your nose, mouth and chin
6. Pinch the wired edge so and press it firmly around your nose bridge
7. Ensure that the sides of the face mask is pressing securely against your cheek, and avoid touching the mask afterwards
8. To remove the mask, touch only the elastic straps * Folding the mask is not necessary*
9. Dispose of a used mask in a trash can with lid, then wash your hands thoroughly
#WuhanPneumonia #NewCoronavurus #GlobalOutbreak
============
Follow Us
Telegram: @guardiansofhongkong
Facebook: http://bit.ly/BeWaterHongKong
Twitter: @BeWaterHKG
Instagram: @guardiansofhk
Things to Know about Wearing Medical Face Masks:
1. Change it every 4 hours
- Masks have to be changed every 4 hours or every time you take it off or if it has been contaminated
- Carry around 2-3 extras with you
- Do not reuse
2. Do not pull the mask towards your chin
- Bacteria will accumulate on the outer layer of the mask
- Instead remove one side of the elastic strap
3. Ensure that the mask is fitted securely against your cheek
- Ensure that both sides of the face mask are fitted firmly against your cheek
- Ensure the bottom of the mask covers your chin entirely
- Make sure the wired edge presses tightly on your nose bridge (so that water vapor will not be emitted from the top edge)
4. Do not touch the outer layer of the mask
- Do not touch the outer later of the mask as it is contaminated after use
- Wash your hands thoroughly if you have touched the outer layer of the mask
- When disposing of the mask, it is not necessary to fold it or roll it up
#WuhanPneumonia #NewCoronavurus
1. Change it every 4 hours
- Masks have to be changed every 4 hours or every time you take it off or if it has been contaminated
- Carry around 2-3 extras with you
- Do not reuse
2. Do not pull the mask towards your chin
- Bacteria will accumulate on the outer layer of the mask
- Instead remove one side of the elastic strap
3. Ensure that the mask is fitted securely against your cheek
- Ensure that both sides of the face mask are fitted firmly against your cheek
- Ensure the bottom of the mask covers your chin entirely
- Make sure the wired edge presses tightly on your nose bridge (so that water vapor will not be emitted from the top edge)
4. Do not touch the outer layer of the mask
- Do not touch the outer later of the mask as it is contaminated after use
- Wash your hands thoroughly if you have touched the outer layer of the mask
- When disposing of the mask, it is not necessary to fold it or roll it up
#WuhanPneumonia #NewCoronavurus
A shipment of pork-celery dumplings from China which was seized at a port in Manila last December has been found to be infected with the African swine fever.
"After 100% examination of its contents and undergoing laboratory test from the Veterinary Quarantine Services (VQS), the pork-celery dumplings indicated the presence of ASF virus,"
CNN Philippines (Jan 25)
Full Article: https://bit.ly/2Rs25Xo
#AfricanSwineFlu #ChinaCrisis
#WithChineseCharacterisitcs
"After 100% examination of its contents and undergoing laboratory test from the Veterinary Quarantine Services (VQS), the pork-celery dumplings indicated the presence of ASF virus,"
CNN Philippines (Jan 25)
Full Article: https://bit.ly/2Rs25Xo
#AfricanSwineFlu #ChinaCrisis
#WithChineseCharacterisitcs
#NetizensVoice
[Facebook Post Translation]
『Update as of 01:22hrs 21 Jan 2020, If you are interested to know more please read the comments of this post, the “Main Actress” had already unfriended me on Facebook』
How to produce Chinese-style biochemical weapon with mobility?
Brought sausages into Italy and Ridiculed Italian Customs of negligence. I am not bothered to hide the identity of this Actress, though she’s not a stranger of mine.
Translation of paragraph 4 in Italian is: “I don’t fucking care this shitty country!”
My Friend, a Mainlander (from People’s Republic of China, hereafter “PRC”), is currently an overseas student in Italy. After she went back to PRC for family visit these weeks, she brought some PRC-sausages, homemade by her grandma, from her hometown to Italy. Hey, this PRC friend is well-known that bringing meat or lean meat products into Italy are strictly prohibited due to the outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) in PRC!
However, the Italian Customs was unable to find out that Chinese-sausage in her luggage. The Actress felt triumphant as she could bring “it” into Italy via the Fiumicino Airport (Aeroporti di Roma) successfully! She thus proudly made a post on her WeChat (PRC-tweeter), ridiculing Italian Customs of negligence & misconduct, without discovering her sausage in luggage…
#PRCistheMostUnethical
#ForeignersSufferinInfectedPRC
#OffenderFeltProud
#ClaimPRCisThirdWorldCountryatsuchMoment
#PRCisaSHITcountry
[WeChat Printscreen Translation]
Miss Fruit
Broadcast on the flight announced seriously that: In accordance with the local law and regulation, inbound passengers must not bring fresh food, such as meat, fruit or plant product etc., into Italy.
During the flight journey, I was worrying about my homemade sausages being seized, that had spent my grandma plenty of money.
I kept brainstorming some explanations in the journey, and well-prepared to yell “mia nonna”! (Grandma in Italian) when Italian Customs found my sausage. I planned to tell the Customs that I was poor with a single mum, it’s not easy for a teen-girl who came from the Third World Country for studying alone in a foreign country. I would “perform my explanation” to Customs by squeezing out some tears (possible!) and making local gestures.
What if the sausage was seized, I can definitely say Goodbye, waving my hand, to Europe, I don’t fucking care about this shitty Country!
Well, it is expected such Italian Customs are always unprofessional (unethical), they even never checked my luggage!
Source: https://bit.ly/2tZyonD
#Sausage #AfricanSwineFever #Italy
[Facebook Post Translation]
『Update as of 01:22hrs 21 Jan 2020, If you are interested to know more please read the comments of this post, the “Main Actress” had already unfriended me on Facebook』
How to produce Chinese-style biochemical weapon with mobility?
Brought sausages into Italy and Ridiculed Italian Customs of negligence. I am not bothered to hide the identity of this Actress, though she’s not a stranger of mine.
Translation of paragraph 4 in Italian is: “I don’t fucking care this shitty country!”
My Friend, a Mainlander (from People’s Republic of China, hereafter “PRC”), is currently an overseas student in Italy. After she went back to PRC for family visit these weeks, she brought some PRC-sausages, homemade by her grandma, from her hometown to Italy. Hey, this PRC friend is well-known that bringing meat or lean meat products into Italy are strictly prohibited due to the outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) in PRC!
However, the Italian Customs was unable to find out that Chinese-sausage in her luggage. The Actress felt triumphant as she could bring “it” into Italy via the Fiumicino Airport (Aeroporti di Roma) successfully! She thus proudly made a post on her WeChat (PRC-tweeter), ridiculing Italian Customs of negligence & misconduct, without discovering her sausage in luggage…
#PRCistheMostUnethical
#ForeignersSufferinInfectedPRC
#OffenderFeltProud
#ClaimPRCisThirdWorldCountryatsuchMoment
#PRCisaSHITcountry
[WeChat Printscreen Translation]
Miss Fruit
Broadcast on the flight announced seriously that: In accordance with the local law and regulation, inbound passengers must not bring fresh food, such as meat, fruit or plant product etc., into Italy.
During the flight journey, I was worrying about my homemade sausages being seized, that had spent my grandma plenty of money.
I kept brainstorming some explanations in the journey, and well-prepared to yell “mia nonna”! (Grandma in Italian) when Italian Customs found my sausage. I planned to tell the Customs that I was poor with a single mum, it’s not easy for a teen-girl who came from the Third World Country for studying alone in a foreign country. I would “perform my explanation” to Customs by squeezing out some tears (possible!) and making local gestures.
What if the sausage was seized, I can definitely say Goodbye, waving my hand, to Europe, I don’t fucking care about this shitty Country!
Well, it is expected such Italian Customs are always unprofessional (unethical), they even never checked my luggage!
Source: https://bit.ly/2tZyonD
#Sausage #AfricanSwineFever #Italy
British and American researchers believe that the confirmed infections in Wuhan is just a tip of a gigantic iceberg.
Full report :
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.01.23.20018549v1
#CoronavirusOutbreak #WuhanPneumonia
Full report :
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.01.23.20018549v1
#CoronavirusOutbreak #WuhanPneumonia
#NetizensVoice
Can I just tell the truth? A week ago, Wuhan sent a patient to Luoyang. The patient was a Luoyang citizen, and there were no vacant hospital beds in Wuhan. Quite a few doctors and nurses in Luoyang have been infected too. Two days ago Wuhan was locked down, and a tens of thousands escaped to Luoyang, among which over a hundred were admitted into hospitals… Not a single word about this was allowed to be said, and they had to report it level by level. Doctor and nurses were crying in secret – couldn’t they be kinder? Tell doctors and nurses so they could wear proper protective clothing before they went to the biochemical frontline! The places where you think there is no outbreak, it’s not that there really isn’t any, it’s just lacking information transparency! Wuhan is known as the thoroughfare of nine provinces, with flights and trains coming and going every day, and it’s been two months since the first case in early December! Don’t hold onto false hope anymore – just assume the worse and that’ll be the truth. Believe in the opposite of what you hear, and you’ll also find the truth.
Source: Internet
https://t.me/zhujuan2018/14252
#Wuhan #CoronaVirusOutBreak
Can I just tell the truth? A week ago, Wuhan sent a patient to Luoyang. The patient was a Luoyang citizen, and there were no vacant hospital beds in Wuhan. Quite a few doctors and nurses in Luoyang have been infected too. Two days ago Wuhan was locked down, and a tens of thousands escaped to Luoyang, among which over a hundred were admitted into hospitals… Not a single word about this was allowed to be said, and they had to report it level by level. Doctor and nurses were crying in secret – couldn’t they be kinder? Tell doctors and nurses so they could wear proper protective clothing before they went to the biochemical frontline! The places where you think there is no outbreak, it’s not that there really isn’t any, it’s just lacking information transparency! Wuhan is known as the thoroughfare of nine provinces, with flights and trains coming and going every day, and it’s been two months since the first case in early December! Don’t hold onto false hope anymore – just assume the worse and that’ll be the truth. Believe in the opposite of what you hear, and you’ll also find the truth.
Source: Internet
https://t.me/zhujuan2018/14252
#Wuhan #CoronaVirusOutBreak
#OpinionArticle
Politics overrides Public Health
An opinion piece from an author in Hong Kong
Three years after the SARS outbreak, China recommended Margaret Chan Fung Fu-Chun as a candidate for the post of Director General on the board of the World Health Organisation (WHO). She succeeded in securing votes from certain African countries by promising political lenience from China, such as the exemption of national debt and foreign aid for infrastructure.
The result was a successful campaign for Chan, and she managed to secure her position as Director General for the next decade. Arguably, the most significant occurrence of her ten-year reign was the failure to declare the Ebola outbreak as an international public health emergency until after casualty statistical surpassed thousands.
The position of Director General was succeeded by Tedros Adhanom from Ethiopia after the conclusion of Chan's administration. I noted during my journey across East Africa a year ago, that local Ethiopians and some Chinese residents commonly associated Ethiopia's rising status in Africa with its ties to the WHO.
There are rumours which indicate that the key reason for Adhanom's succession was owed largely to the influence of the Chinese government. Specifically, it is said that the Chinese government aided his campaign by lobbying and pressuring participating countries (i.e. other candidates) who are are financially dependent on China's economic power, into submission. The result was a victorious campaign for Adhanom against other running candidates.
Further, it is said that shortly after Adhanom came to power, the 'favour' was returned to China through his appointment of the pro-China Confucius Peace Prize winner and former President of Zimbabwe, Robert Gabriel Mugabe, as a goodwill ambassador. This appointment has since been criticised as being politically driven rather than based on merit.
Having related these facts, I would like to point out that WHO's response to the current epidemic in China has been outpaced by its realistic development. For instance, the WHO was slow to confirm the presence of human-to-human transmission, despite substantial evidence suggesting this very nature of identified viruses. In fact, at a time when suspicions for human-to-human transmission were paramount, the WHO only acknowledged this to the extent of "limited person-to-person transmission". "Sustainable person-to-person transmission" was only publicly declared following the exposure of more infected cases. To date, the WHO has yet to officially declare this epidemic as a 'Public Health Emergency of International Concern' (PHEIC), despite the government-imposed lockdown of Wuhan. Whilst the global community is questioning the reasons behind China's intentional censorship of information regarding the epidemic, the WHO's Director General is instead praising China for the precautionary measures it has taken. It would appear that the political agenda of gaining China's favour overrides the concern for civilian health.
Ten years ago when Margaret Chan was elected the Director General of the WHO, a review article published by the British Medical Journal suggested that it is possible that the position of Director General for the WHO may not be adopted by an individual who is necessarily the most suitable for the responsibilities required in this role. Rather, the individual who succeeds in this position may prove to be a savvy politician instead.
I hope that Margaret Chan's successor will not simply behave like a politician in the face of such a global health emergency.
Source : Facebook
Politics overrides Public Health
An opinion piece from an author in Hong Kong
Three years after the SARS outbreak, China recommended Margaret Chan Fung Fu-Chun as a candidate for the post of Director General on the board of the World Health Organisation (WHO). She succeeded in securing votes from certain African countries by promising political lenience from China, such as the exemption of national debt and foreign aid for infrastructure.
The result was a successful campaign for Chan, and she managed to secure her position as Director General for the next decade. Arguably, the most significant occurrence of her ten-year reign was the failure to declare the Ebola outbreak as an international public health emergency until after casualty statistical surpassed thousands.
The position of Director General was succeeded by Tedros Adhanom from Ethiopia after the conclusion of Chan's administration. I noted during my journey across East Africa a year ago, that local Ethiopians and some Chinese residents commonly associated Ethiopia's rising status in Africa with its ties to the WHO.
There are rumours which indicate that the key reason for Adhanom's succession was owed largely to the influence of the Chinese government. Specifically, it is said that the Chinese government aided his campaign by lobbying and pressuring participating countries (i.e. other candidates) who are are financially dependent on China's economic power, into submission. The result was a victorious campaign for Adhanom against other running candidates.
Further, it is said that shortly after Adhanom came to power, the 'favour' was returned to China through his appointment of the pro-China Confucius Peace Prize winner and former President of Zimbabwe, Robert Gabriel Mugabe, as a goodwill ambassador. This appointment has since been criticised as being politically driven rather than based on merit.
Having related these facts, I would like to point out that WHO's response to the current epidemic in China has been outpaced by its realistic development. For instance, the WHO was slow to confirm the presence of human-to-human transmission, despite substantial evidence suggesting this very nature of identified viruses. In fact, at a time when suspicions for human-to-human transmission were paramount, the WHO only acknowledged this to the extent of "limited person-to-person transmission". "Sustainable person-to-person transmission" was only publicly declared following the exposure of more infected cases. To date, the WHO has yet to officially declare this epidemic as a 'Public Health Emergency of International Concern' (PHEIC), despite the government-imposed lockdown of Wuhan. Whilst the global community is questioning the reasons behind China's intentional censorship of information regarding the epidemic, the WHO's Director General is instead praising China for the precautionary measures it has taken. It would appear that the political agenda of gaining China's favour overrides the concern for civilian health.
Ten years ago when Margaret Chan was elected the Director General of the WHO, a review article published by the British Medical Journal suggested that it is possible that the position of Director General for the WHO may not be adopted by an individual who is necessarily the most suitable for the responsibilities required in this role. Rather, the individual who succeeds in this position may prove to be a savvy politician instead.
I hope that Margaret Chan's successor will not simply behave like a politician in the face of such a global health emergency.
Source : Facebook
Friendly Reminder: Carrie Lam did not mould the metal wire of the mask over her nose bridge to ensure a proper seal for her mask. The way she wore her face mask is wrong and she is still vulnerable to the viruses.
Carrie Lam Finally Wears A Face Mask:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/16144
How to Prevent Wuhan Pnemonia
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/16160
#WuhanPneumonia #CarrieLam #NewCoronavirus
Carrie Lam Finally Wears A Face Mask:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/16144
How to Prevent Wuhan Pnemonia
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/16160
#WuhanPneumonia #CarrieLam #NewCoronavirus
HKU Dormitory Forces Students to Move Away Overnight to Make Way for Quarantine Floors
Apple Daily received a complaint about lower-level floors of student dormitory at Lady Ho Tung Hall and Starr Hall being forcibly expropriated and used as quarantine floors for students returning from areas affected by the Wuhan pneumonia after the Lunar New Year holiday.
Students currently living on those floors were asked to move out on Jan 28. More than 70 students living in Lady Ho Tung Hall alone were affected.
Source also revealed that representatives of the university dormitories approached school authorities two weeks ago on this matter, and have been waiting for a reply. 15 Chairpersons of the student dormitories of HKU petitioned to Vice Chancellor Zhang Xiang, questioning the idea of having a quarantine floor, as it brings fearful reminders of how Amoy Gardens became a SARS cluster, and how this could happen in Lady Ho Tung Hall and Starr Hall.
Source: Apple Daily #Jan28
#HKU #WuhanPneumonia
Apple Daily received a complaint about lower-level floors of student dormitory at Lady Ho Tung Hall and Starr Hall being forcibly expropriated and used as quarantine floors for students returning from areas affected by the Wuhan pneumonia after the Lunar New Year holiday.
Students currently living on those floors were asked to move out on Jan 28. More than 70 students living in Lady Ho Tung Hall alone were affected.
Source also revealed that representatives of the university dormitories approached school authorities two weeks ago on this matter, and have been waiting for a reply. 15 Chairpersons of the student dormitories of HKU petitioned to Vice Chancellor Zhang Xiang, questioning the idea of having a quarantine floor, as it brings fearful reminders of how Amoy Gardens became a SARS cluster, and how this could happen in Lady Ho Tung Hall and Starr Hall.
Source: Apple Daily #Jan28
#HKU #WuhanPneumonia