Forwarded from 📡Guardians of Hong Kong
#CoronavirusPandemic #SelfHelp
Honesty is a key to Vietnam's coronavirus success
Vietnam has a long border with #China spanning more than 1400 km and a large population of over 95 million, yet it has only recorded some 320 cases of coronavirus and zero deaths, according to the official figures as of mid-May. The last local cases were reported more than a month ago, suggesting Vietnam is now free of community transmission.
While #Vietnam is an authoritarian, one-party state where the freedom of speech and information is limited, most healthcare experts and diplomats believe the official statistics is trustworthy. Funeral homes interviewed by Reuters has also seen no surge in deaths.
Contrary to the alleged cover-up in China in the early days of the epidemic, Vietnamese authorities proactively disseminated information via various platforms at the very beginning. These include regular text messages to all phone users and a creative song called "Ghen Cô Vy" to promote personal hygiene, which has gone viral in Vietnam and beyond. Their transparent response during this crisis has helped unify the public and eventually spared Vietnamese a high death toll.
Honesty in the handling of this epidemic is all the more important to regain public trust in light of the public criticism of the Vietnamese government in recent years. The authorities have been blamed in 2016 for covering up the marine disaster caused by chemical spill. They have also faced protests due to public concerns over China's influence in the special economic zones.
The Chinese authorities, on the other hand, have not learnt from the SARS outbreak of 2003. They have chosen to put politics above human lives by cracking down on whistleblowers in December and January. Critics suggest that serious measures to contain the virus had been delayed by a few weeks because of that.
Sources:
BBC, 15 May
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-52628283
ABC, 13 May
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-13/coronavirus-vietnam-no-deaths-success-in-south-east-asia/12237314
The Guardian, 1 May
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/01/testing-vietnam-contained-coronavirus
Reuters, 29 Apr
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-vietnam-fight-insi/after-aggressive-mass-testing-vietnam-says-it-contains-coronavirus-outbreak-idUSKBN22B34H
Foreign Policy, 15 Apr
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/04/15/coronavirus-vietnam-communist-party-hanoi/
Song "Ghen Cô Vy", official English version
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGoodWEtV8c
#Coronavirus
Honesty is a key to Vietnam's coronavirus success
Vietnam has a long border with #China spanning more than 1400 km and a large population of over 95 million, yet it has only recorded some 320 cases of coronavirus and zero deaths, according to the official figures as of mid-May. The last local cases were reported more than a month ago, suggesting Vietnam is now free of community transmission.
While #Vietnam is an authoritarian, one-party state where the freedom of speech and information is limited, most healthcare experts and diplomats believe the official statistics is trustworthy. Funeral homes interviewed by Reuters has also seen no surge in deaths.
Contrary to the alleged cover-up in China in the early days of the epidemic, Vietnamese authorities proactively disseminated information via various platforms at the very beginning. These include regular text messages to all phone users and a creative song called "Ghen Cô Vy" to promote personal hygiene, which has gone viral in Vietnam and beyond. Their transparent response during this crisis has helped unify the public and eventually spared Vietnamese a high death toll.
Honesty in the handling of this epidemic is all the more important to regain public trust in light of the public criticism of the Vietnamese government in recent years. The authorities have been blamed in 2016 for covering up the marine disaster caused by chemical spill. They have also faced protests due to public concerns over China's influence in the special economic zones.
The Chinese authorities, on the other hand, have not learnt from the SARS outbreak of 2003. They have chosen to put politics above human lives by cracking down on whistleblowers in December and January. Critics suggest that serious measures to contain the virus had been delayed by a few weeks because of that.
Sources:
BBC, 15 May
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-52628283
ABC, 13 May
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-13/coronavirus-vietnam-no-deaths-success-in-south-east-asia/12237314
The Guardian, 1 May
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/01/testing-vietnam-contained-coronavirus
Reuters, 29 Apr
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-vietnam-fight-insi/after-aggressive-mass-testing-vietnam-says-it-contains-coronavirus-outbreak-idUSKBN22B34H
Foreign Policy, 15 Apr
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/04/15/coronavirus-vietnam-communist-party-hanoi/
Song "Ghen Cô Vy", official English version
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGoodWEtV8c
#Coronavirus
BBC News
Coronavirus: How 'overreaction' made Vietnam a virus success
Vietnam chose to prevent rather than fight Covid-19, a strategy which means it has had no virus deaths.