By Zachary Evans
Monday, November 02, 2020
China has effectively blocked the World Health
Organization from investigating the origins of the novel coronavirus, the New
York Times reported on Monday.
The coronavirus was first reported to have originated at
an animal market in Wuhan, China, however numerous observers have already
questioned this account of the virus’s origins. Among other issues, the
original host animal—a species of bat—was not sold at the particular animal
market, and the city of Wuhan is home
to virology labs where coronaviruses
were studied.
While an investigation into the origins of the
coronavirus could help prevent future pandemics, China is not allowing the
W.H.O. to conduct an independent probe of the matter, according to internal
documents and interviews by the Times.
Documents show that research on the first coronavirus
patients and the outbreak at the animal market will be handled by Chinese
scientists, with W.H.O. personnel set to “augment, rather than duplicate” that
research. W.H.O. officials have also complained privately that China has not
granted them full access to materials relevant to the probe, while outwardly
praising China’s response to the pandemic.
“It was an absolute whitewash,” Lawrence O. Gostin, a
professor of global health law at Georgetown University, told the Times
regarding the agency’s investigation. “But the answer was, that was the best
they could negotiate with Xi Jinping.”
The Trump administration has reacted furiously to China’s
failure to prevent the coronavirus from spreading. President Trump has moved to
cut U.S. funding to the W.H.O., blaming the organization for parroting Chinese
propaganda regarding the country’s response.
The coronavirus has killed at least 1.2 million people
worldwide and sickened over 46 million, with actual numbers for the sick and
dead likely higher due to underreporting.
No comments:
Post a Comment