Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (C), World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General, addresses a press conference, on which WHO said that China's latest epidemiological paper on COVID-19 is important in enabling it to provide advice to other countries, in Geneva, Switzerland, Feb. 17, 2020. (Xinhua/Chen Junxia)
By Chen Qingqing and Li Aixin
Halting funding to an organization that plays an irreplaceable and vital role in helping countries get prepared for and respond to the pandemic is a “move of genocide” against humanity, especially when most virus-stricken places are still suffering, and shifting the blame to the World Health Organization (WHO) won’t help cover up US President Donald Trump’s catastrophic mishandling of the coronavirus crisis, leading the US into a very dangerous situation, experts and netizens warned.
Trump announced on Tuesday the US would halt funding for the WHO over its coronavirus response, accusing the organization of severely mismanaging and covering up the outbreak and claiming that the WHO made a dangerous decision in opposing travel restrictions from China and other nations.
This decision to unilaterally slash funding to the organization, which is widely recognized for its essential role in providing global governance over health and disease crises, came after the Trump administration was slammed for mishandling the pandemic, which has so far caused over 600,000 confirmed cases in the US, with reportedly over 2,300 deaths on Tuesday – the highest daily death toll.
Many foreign and Chinese experts, from medical professionals and key opinion influencers to geopolitical observers, voiced strong opposition to the decision, particularly when the majority of countries and regions across the world have been fighting the pandemic with the help of the WHO.
China on Wednesday expressed serious concern over the US move. The US halting WHO funding will undermine WHO’s abilities and global cooperation on combating COVID-19. All countries, including the US will be affected, Zhao Lijian, spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told a press conference.
Withholding funding for the WHO once again reflected Trump’s populist stance – hoping the world will make contributions to the US while the US itself makes no contribution to the world, Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Wednesday.
“The US, which has shown no interest in global collaboration since Trump assumed office, is encouraging countries to stew in their own juices,” he said.
Some veteran medical experts said that this diversion of public attention from the US’ own failure in dealing with COVID-19 to an international health organization is truly unethical and disgraceful.
Trump has been sharpening his criticism of the WHO in recent days, claiming that the specialized UN agency focused too much on China and issued inappropriate guidelines. However, since the beginning of the outbreak, the WHO has been issuing warnings and sharing experiences with countries and regions across the world.
The WHO warned countries and regions across the world in mid-January and declared the novel coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency of international concern on January 30.
Based on that, the US government made the decision to restrict entry from China, though the WHO advised against the application of travel restrictions. While Trump paid little attention to WHO’s advice, he also reportedly ignored a warning from a senior government advisor in late January, insisting that he was “not concerned” about the public health crisis in an interview on March 7.
The US government thought the country would be safe by banning travelers from China but completely ignored the warnings of experts, did nothing to supervise and prevent the spread of the virus in communities and did nothing to prepare for the epidemic.
Richard Horton, editor-in-chief of well-known medical journal The Lancet, tweeted that the decision to defund the WHO “is simply this – a crime against humanity. Every scientist, every health worker, every citizen must resist and rebel against this appalling betrayal of global solidarity.”
Zeng Guang, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, told the Global Times that now is the right time for the WHO to play its role as the global community tries to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, and the US attempt to pass the buck to the organization is “unethical and will only make it more isolated in the world.”
The US is the biggest financial contributor to the WHO for 2020-2021, accounting for 22 percent of the total assessed contributions from the organization’s member states, according to WHO data. Trump also noted on Tuesday that American taxpayers provided between $400 million and $500 million per year to it while China contributes about $40 million per year or less.
Brett McGurk, a former senior national security adviser to three American presidents, said that ceasing contributions to the WHO in the middle of a raging global pandemic is “an embarrassment – a sign of weakness, panic, and scapegoating.”
Thirty percent of countries around the world have no COVID-19 response programs and depend on the WHO for assistance, McGurk said in a tweet. The US is not about to fill this gap, and more people will die and the virus will spread in order to distract from Trump’s negligence.
The US showed little interest in cooperation amid the pandemic, which was soon revealed in its disputes with its close allies after the outbreak.
For instance, in early April, the US blocked exports of masks from 3M, one of the biggest US mask manufacturers, to other countries. The move soon met with condemnation from Canada.
Washington was also accused of “piracy” by Berlin for reportedly diverting a shipment of masks intended for Germany.
Influential American billionaire Bill Gates said in a tweet that it is a dangerous move, as the WHO is slowing the spread of the virus, and if that work is stopped, no other organization can replace it.
“The world needs the WHO now more than ever,” he said.
The US suspension of funds to the WHO won’t impact the international health organization in its sharing of information with the world, but may result in a shortage of funds for staff salaries and some projects, Zeng from China’s CDC said.
With the Trump administration continuing to withdraw from international organizations and now defunding the WHO, voices calling for China to step into the power vacuum and lead the world have again emerged on the internet.
“This is an extreme way of portraying China’s efforts,” Li said, noting that China is doing everything within its ability to coordinate global efforts in the fight against the coronavirus, as well as contributing its resources and experience to other countries, but China is not dominating, or manipulating others’ fights in the battlefield.
China and the WHO are fulfilling their duties by trying hard to pool what resources they can mobilize as collaboration and solidarity are badly needed to fight the global pandemic, according to experts.
Some American netizens slammed Trump’s decision to defund the WHO, particularly during a pandemic, claiming it is tantamount to genocide.
“Instead of spending money on wars and arms for dictators, we should invest in the WHO and ensure our national security by protecting the health of all people,” a netizen said.
Global Times
