[Enemy Of The State]

From the Taipei Times

China's SARS victory questionedMIRACLE: Health officials wondered how Beijing managed to go from 300 new cases a day to zero in less than a month, prompting the WHO to lift its warnings on China
By Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTER
Thursday, Jun 26, 2003,Page 3

"China will `contaminate' the functions of the WHO if it continues to oppress Taiwan."

Lin Chia-lung, Cabinet spokesman

Curious about how Beijing managed to be removed from the World Health Organization's (WHO) list of SARS-affected areas, Premier Yu Shyi-kun yesterday instructed the Department of Health to collect information on how Beijing had battled the disease.

Lee Ming-liang, vice convener of the Cabinet's SARS Control and Relief Committee, yesterday was puzzled by how China was removed list of affected areas. The WHO simultaneously lifted its travel advisory on Beijing.

Lee said Beijing's performance was so incredible that it was inexplicable in the light of public-health theory.

"During the peak on May 6, there were still 300 new SARS cases each day in Beijing. How come on May 31, there were suddenly zero cases. It means China contained the disease in less than one month, which is unbelievable," Lee said.

Lee said that during the peak in Hong Kong and Singapore, there were 156 and 22 cases respectively. But it took more than two months for these two areas to get the disease under control.

"On May 6, Taiwan's SARS cases were only one-fifth of those in Beijing. It also took-three-and-half weeks for Taiwan to contain SARS," Lee said. " I really have no idea how China made it."

Yu yesterday called on China to stop suppressing Taiwan in the political and medical arenas and called on the WHO not to cave in to China's pressure to exclude 23 million Taiwanese from the international medical network.

"China will `contaminate' the functions of the WHO if it continues to oppress Taiwan. Its bullying will not only make Taiwanese people detest it even more but also create a backlash in the international community," Cabinet Spokesman Lin Chia-lung  quoted Yu as saying yesterday morning after the weekly closed-door Cabinet meeting.

According to Lin, China made the WHO change the name "Taiwan" to "Taiwan Province, China" in a report filed by the medical experts dispatched by the WHO to Taipei, recommending the global health body to remove the country from the travel advisory list.

"Examples like this highlight that we're under the suppression of China at every turn," Lin said.

Taiwan was removed from the list on June 17 -- 41 days after the WHO issued the travel warning against the country on May 8.

Despite the continued pressure, Lin said the nation will continue to participate in international events, including APEC's health ministers' meeting scheduled for tomorrow in Bangkok.

According to Lin, Department of Health Director-General Chen Chien-jen, who is scheduled to leave today, will represent the nation at the meeting.

Lin said that the government is set to lift various control measures imposed on visitors from Hong Kong and Macau today and on Beijing on Monday or Tuesday next week.

 

[_Jim]

"During the peak on May 6, there were still 300 new SARS cases each day in Beijing. How come on May 31, there were suddenly zero cases. It means China contained the disease in less than one month, which is unbelievable," Lee said.

Was this a result of finally getting some definitive tests and test methodology in place so every case of respiratory infection that walks inside the hospital door wouldn't simply be classified SARS by hospital personnel -

<sarcasm>

- or was their 'point' made (to whomever - various 'world powers', bankers, would politicos) so they could 'feel free' to turn off the 'tap' that was producing SARS?

</sarcasm>