China plagued by bird-flu coverups

Asia Times Online ^ | June 8, 2006 | Xu Xiang

[Smokin' Joe]

YANGZHOU, CHUZHOU and CHENZHOU, China - Having learned a bitter lesson from covering up the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic in early 2003, the central government of China now is said to be taking a more positive, responsible attitude in dealing with avian influenza, or bird flu. But that hasn't filtered down to the provinces.

>snip<

Beijing has punished some local officials for their incompetence in dealing with bird-flu outbreaks. For instance, in May it was announced that five officials in Dazhu county in Sichuan province had been sacked for of dereliction of duty because they did not report and contain the local outbreak in time.

But during an investigative reporting trip to three locations in China, Asia Times Online found that in rural areas, local officials and residents really don't like any action that might expose a possible bird-flu outbreak, fearing the damage it would do to the economy. Because of this, they hate individuals who dare to inform authorities of any bird-flu case.

[Smokin' Joe]

More at the link. Interesting read about the repercussions of being a bird flu informant in China, as well.

[Smokin' Joe]

ping

[Gabz]

And this should surprise us???????

[Judith Anne]

China is scheduled to host the 2008 Olympics, isn't it?

[Smokin' Joe]

Iirc, you are right.

[toast]

Near the Jiangsu provincial capital Nanjing, Gaoyou abounds in geese and ducks. Poultry and eggs provide almost the entire gross domestic product (GDP) to Gaoyou. For the locals, an outbreak of bird flu there could mean the end of the world.

So the choice is take a chance on bird flu or face starvation.

The Chinese government has no chance of containing this virus.

If Americans were faced with the same situation, they would do no better.

[Smokin' Joe]

If Americans are faced with the situation, there will be severe economic repercussions also. That provides motivation to downplay the situation, which may not be a bad thing unless there is that critical mutation which allows this to become a pandemic.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so I'd be gently taking the same general precautions for a week long blizzard, but with more of everything. Just a reasonably well stocked pantry and a couple of jugs of water are a beginning. Don't forget extra toilet paper, either...

If there is a major problem, supplies will dry up fast.

[Don Joe]

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More at the link. Interesting read about the repercussions of being a bird flu informant in China, as well.

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Indeed:

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But during an investigative reporting trip to three locations in China, Asia Times Online found that in rural areas, local officials and residents really don't like any action that might expose a possible bird-flu outbreak, fearing the damage it would do to the economy. Because of this, they hate individuals who dare to inform authorities of any bird-flu case.

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A few minutes ago, right before I read this thread, I posted something that dovetails (dove-tails, I'm full of puns today!) with this material:

Ag Secretary Says Bird Flu Easily Found (post #18)

And as I type this, I see that you just posted a followup in that thread linking back to this one.

In summary, I think that this is a universal phenomenon, otherwise known as "common sense."

It is troubling that our "leaders", putatively entrusted with handling this situation, are oblivious to the obvious.

[G. Stolyarov II]

This is an interesting question: how many birds and/or people have died of bird flu in China so far? Has the danger been real, or is it merely hypothetical? Some statistics would be useful in answering this.

I am
G. Stolyarov II
http://www.zhonghuarising.com