Beyond coronavirus story, China fighting for the world

While China is stepping up its efforts to curb the outbreak of deadly coronavirus, many media outlets are focused on the impact of the disease without paying more attention to the government’s efforts in the face of this enormous challenge.

Definitely, the rise of death toll and rapid spread of the virus are considered newsworthy by those who work in media, but the epic battle being waged by China against the virus also deserves to be highlighted.

Since the novel coronavirus, dubbed recently as COVID-19, hit Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, the central government in Beijing has taken immediate and crucial actions to contain it. The whole infected city, with about 12 million population, was put under quarantine. Also, public transportation was stopped and all flights from and to Wuhan’s airport was cancelled.

Although the virus spread like wildfire in several cities since its outbreak in December, a huge number of medical staff members have volunteered to play their patriotic role in all affected areas demonstrating immense braveness and spirit of sacrifice. Remarkably, every sector in the state has become a hive of activity including the citizens themselves who helped the government control the epidemic by complying with the instructions of China’s National Health Commission.

As a journalist wanting to know more about the real situation on the ground, I interviewed some Egyptians living in China through WeChat, Chinese social media platform. Most of them said that everything was stable and the virus was contained.

An Egyptian working in Beijing said he follows-up the daily health instructions posted on online apps and avoids public gathering places, adding that the government provides all forms of protection and support for both foreigners and Chinese.

Another Egyptian said the leadership assessed the situation precisely in the virus-hit areas and put an overall strategy to deal with emergencies and the number of infected cases.

When I asked them whether they wanted to leave China, they answered “we are confident that the strength of this country and its people will wipe out this disease. It is a matter of time and it will come very soon.”

Undoubtedly, countering coronavirus poses a huge challenge for China, and of course, that is not easy at all, but there is a story of struggle needing to be told.

While many countries find the control of this dreadful epidemic uncontrollable, the second-largest economy is harnessing its power both financially and technologically to curb this serious virus.

In his address to global media, Bruce Aylward, a top Canadian epidemiologist who recently presided over the WHO-China Joint Mission on COVID-19, praised the containment measures adopted by the Chinese government.

In the meantime, chairman of Britain's 48 Group Club, Stephen Perry, said China demonstrated remarkable coordination and selflessness in its fight against the novel coronavirus.

In his interview with Xinhua news agency, Perry also lauded the preventive actions carried out by government which helped stop the epidemic from further spreading in the country.

Having taken all these decisive measure, the government is now controlling the spread of the virus. Official data recently revealed that many provinces, except Hubei, recorded no new cases.

Globally, the novel coronavirus has killed more than 2,900 people, the vast majority in Chinese mainland. With more than 85,000 cases recording worldwide, the World Health Organization said the outbreak has reached the “highest level” of risk, warning it can go in "any direction."

Not only is China waging a war against COVID-19 for its people, but in fact, it is shouldering the responsibility on behalf of the whole world.

The author is the head of foreign affairs department at Al-Gomhuria newspaper.

The opinions expressed here are those of the writer and do not represent the views of China Daily and China Daily website.