China’s virus fight squares with shared future concept

By Bao Chuanjian Source:Global Times Published: 2020/4/1 13:03:40

Photo: IC

China's fight against the novel coronavirus pneumonia, officially known as COVID-19, has continued to make headway. Traffic controls within Hubei have been loosened, and economic production and social activities have resumed. Education departments in some provinces are mapping out the beginning of the first semester in 2020 amid the improving epidemic situation. Yet people are still vigilant about another wave of infections in the country.

At the same time, the global landscape of fighting the coronavirus has become increasingly severe. Almost all countries and regions waged a war against the pandemic, with more than 856,000 confirmed cases and over 42,000 fatalities worldwide. More than 60 countries have imposed states of emergency. 

Data collected by the World Health Organization (WHO) shows it took 67 days to reach 100,000 confirmed cases. The US, Italy and Spain have overtaken China for confirmed cases, while Italy and Spain reports larger death tolls than China. The virus is hitting health frontlines hard in the US and Europe with an alarming acceleration.

The pandemic respects no national borders, and all countries are a community with a shared future. Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC), China's decision-making and effectiveness in the people's war has earned valuable time for the world and made important contributions to the global governance of health security. 

While doing its best to battle the common enemy of mankind, China has actively provided assistance to 83 countries so far within its ability. In addition to intergovernmental assistance, local governments and enterprises in China are also actively engaged in supporting countries with severe conditions by donating needed medical and preventative materials.

China's practical actions to build a community of shared future for mankind set a good example for others to follow. The dedicated efforts to curb the virus left many useful lessons. These feasible and replicable approaches will empower the establishment, business community, and the general public to find the best solution within their own situation. 

Many political heavyweights and experts praised China's approach to fighting the pandemic. UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed appreciation for China's sharing of preventative experience with developing countries. The WHO believes the world needs China's experience. 

In fact, China's approaches, including canceling public gatherings, rapid detection of infections, isolation of close contacts, social distancing and building makeshift hospitals, have already been adopted by many countries.

Playing a leading role in the management of global crisis is what the international community expects of major powers. The institutional advantage and social cohesion under the leadership of the CPC are manifested in this people's war against the virus. The ideological bias still matters during trying times, but a flotilla of media in many developed countries have offered more encouraging and objective stories about China's efforts.

It is undeniable that there is still doubt about China's approach, e.g., through the prism of the economic cost, in the West. Influenced by thinking such as "cultural superiority" and "clash of civilizations," racial discrimination such as "yellow peril" has revived from time to time. Noticeably, both theories of "China's collapse" and "China threat" are constantly appearing in the West in the last decades. 

It is foreseeable that "playing China card" and stigmatization of China will continue in different forms after the pandemic, thanks to the influence of ideological competition, populism and xenophobia.

Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, the concept of a community of a shared future for mankind advocated by China has showed increasing resilience. After all, statesmen across the political spectrum have acknowledged that the game of shifting blame and shirking responsibility will result in the disorder of the global governance system and cost more lives.

The win-win cooperation of all countries is the most effective way to manage the current crisis and cope with future risks and challenges.

The author is an assistant professor at Central Compilation and Translation Bureau. opinion@globaltimes.comc.cn



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