Honorable President,
The Chinese delegation supports the current World
Health Assembly in making Health Environment for
Children its theme. The Chinese Government stands
ready to make unremitting efforts to create a healthy
environment for its 300 million children and children
across the world.
Nevertheless, we are very clear that our world is
still faced with some unknown infectious diseases.
They pose a threat to the life and health of children
and they are a challenge to the whole mankind. The
recent outbreak of SARS is just a case in point. It
has struck some countries and regions. Of which china
has been the hardest hit. SARS is a new type of
infectious disease not yet fully understood by
mankind. At the onset of the epidemic, we did not
have an adequate understanding of how grave the
epidemic would be. There were defects in our control
and no uninterrupted flow of information. All that
plus inefficiency of some localities and departments
has made our work of SARS control somewhat passive
for a period of time.
But the Chinese Government soon came to realize the
challenge of the epidemic and has taken a series of
prompt and decisive measures to fight SARS. We have
put the SARS control on top of the agenda for
government at all levels. The National SARS Control
Headquarters has been set up to provide unified
leadership over nationwide SARS prevention and
control. Local governments at all levels have also
set up SARS control steering panels and introduced a
SARS control responsibility system for leaders of
local governments. The Central Government has sent
experts-based inspection teams to 31 provinces,
municipalities and autonomous regions on China’s
mainland to supervise and guide local SARS control
work at close quarters. The Chinese Government has
already listed SARS among the statutory notifiable
infectious diseases. A Regulations on Public Health
Emergencies was formulated and promulgated and
promulgated. An open and transparent SARS cases
report and information release system has been put in
place to brief the WHO and the general public on the
epidemic every day. No locality or department is
permitted to underreport, misreport or cover up SARS
cases, or delay such reports. Early detection, early
reporting, early isolation and early treatment are
required. Stringent quarantine and precautions have
been conducted in means of public transport such as
airplanes, trains, ships, buses and key areas as well
as ports of exit and entry, where health declaration
forms must be filled and submitted. Rigorous
sanitation measures have been taken to disinfect SARS
contaminated places and articles and we felt deeply
that preventing infection within hospitals is of
vital importance. Epidemiological investigation has
been strengthened. All SARS patients or suspected
patients have been put in isolation and given
treatment wherever detected. All those having had
close contact with SARS patients have been put in
isolation or under observation wherever detected.
Meanwhile, extensive efforts have been made to
publicize information on SARS control and prevention
and to enhance public awareness and ability of
self-protection, thus getting the whole society
mobilized and ensuring mass prevention and control.
Designated hospitals or wards for SARS cases have
been set up in many localities. Patients are
hospitalized and treated in time. Traditional,
western and a combination of the two therapies have
been applied to treat and cure SARS patients. China
is a country of 900 million farmers. We cannot but
place priority on epidemic control in the vast
countryside. Considering the practical difficulties
of farmers, we have set up a special SARS fund to
finance free treatment of farmer SARS patients. In
order to prevent the spread of the epidemic to the
rural areas, we strengthened management over migrant
workers, trying to reduce their mobility and
providing free treatment to patients wherever they
are infected. Medical assistance has been offered to
low-income urban residents. In order to find out
about the source of the epidemic, develop rapid
diagnostics tests and a cure, we organized experts in
various fields to strengthen SARS-related R&D and
jointly work for key medical breakthroughs, where
some progress has been made. We believe it necessary
to actively undertake international and regional
exchanges and cooperation. We invited WHO experts to
china for investigation many times. They gave us many
suggestions, which were helpful for our SARS control
work. We have also conveyed to ASEAN our ideas and
initiatives about regional cooperation on SARS.
We have set up a joint SARS-control working mechanism
with the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative
regions. We have provided Hong Kong with medical
materials it needs and stand ready to send medical
care workers there if so requested. We have conducted
multi-form cooperation and exchanges on SARS control
with the region of Taiwan.
At present, SARS control and prevention in china are
proceeding in a well-organized manner. Although in
the past few days the epidemic has been relatively
stable with a tendency of decreasing cases, the
situation remains serious, as there are still a small
number of new cases every day and china is a country
with a large and mobile population. At present our
fight against SARS is at a crucial stage. We are
keenly aware of the difficulty, complexity and the
possibility of a relapse in SARS control and
prevention and will never be off guard against SARS.
We are will prepared in all aspects. With its strong
leadership and people united as one as well as with
the understanding, trust and support of the
international community, China will prevail over the
formidable scourge of SARS through persistent
endeavour.
In our fight against SARS, the international
community has shown its understanding and extended
its support. On behalf of the Chinese Government and
people, I hereby wish to extend sincere gratitude to
all countries and international organizations for
their understanding, moral supports as well as
financial, material and technological assistance.
Mr. President,
The outbreak of SARS is a tragic incident for which
China has paid a high price. On the basis of the
experience and lessons we have learned the hard way,
I would like to make the following three
observations:
1.It is important to give full play to the role of
WHO in global health affairs and strengthen
international and bilateral cooperation. Any disease,
especially new ones of unknown causes, is the common
enemy of all mankind and can be effectively addressed
only by cooperation at international and regional
levels. At present, WHO certainly has a greater role
to play in information exchange, personnel training,
technical support and resource exploitation, etc., in
the fight against SARS. At the same time, it is
necessary to promote and enhance bilateral
cooperation, give play to respective advantages,
actively explore the source of the virus and share
SARS control experience and research results. Efforts
should be made to coordinate countries'
exit-and-entry quarantine and other administrative
measures so as to effectively check the spread of
SARS and avoid harm to social and economic
development brought about by over-reacting. We
consider it necessary to set up a global SARS control
fund, and China is ready to make its contribution in
this regard.
2. It is essential to establish and improve global
contingency mechanism and upgrade the capacity to
cope with the scourge of diseases. Countries should
establish and improve a network of epidemic
monitoring, prevention, treatment and information
exchange. Once something unusual occurs, countries
should brief each other in time according to the
agreed standards and via agreed channels so that
countries can judge and handle the situation
correctly.
3. It is imperative to coordinate and synchronize
economic growth and social development so that they
will complement each other. Economic growth is the
very foundation for social developments. The
development of public health,education and other
social undertakings, is not only the aim of economic
growth, but also an obligation of governments of all
countries . Investing in health is tantamount to
investing in future economic growth, and a society of
good health is one of rich wealth.
Globalization has increasingly turned the homeland of
mankind into a global village. No country can hope to
live a life of leisure and comfort behind the closed
doors. Once a crisis breaks out, a mere complaining
or blaming others does not help. Instead, mutual
understanding, cooperation and joint countermeasures
are the only solution to the crisis. The Chinese
Government stands ready to sincerely cooperate with
other countries and will shoulder its own
responsibility, perform its duty and play a
constructive role in fighting the scourge of global
diseases.
Thank you, Mr. President.
