China to honor heroes of COVID-19 fight
China’s rewarding of heroes who made significant contributions to the country’s hardfought war against COVID-19 on Tuesday signals a new phase in the victory of Beijing’s battle against the virus, and is also a recognition of every Chinese person’s efforts in the past nine months, said China’s top epidemiologists.
Step by step, China has managed to bring the risk of the deadly virus under control on its soil, and one virus-attacked city after another has returned to normalcy after efforts made from top down. China’s achievement in the virus battle has been for the world to see, they said.
China will hold a ceremony to honor individuals and groups who fought bravely in the country’s battle against the COVID-19 epidemic on Tuesday morning in Beijing. During the event, President Xi Jinping is expected to confer the Medal of the Republic and other honorary titles to heroes who made outstanding contributions to the fight.
The ceremony is a recognition of the effort of every Chinese in the battle against the novel coronavirus as well as the fact that China has achieved a phased victory, Zeng Guang, chief epidemiologist of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC), told the Global Times.
“This fight against COVID-19 depicts the unity of the Chinese people when facing difficulties. Below the surface of those who are about to be awarded, there are many individuals and organizations who have shown dedication in labs, patient beds and in fighting the virus day and night without being noticed by media and others.”
While the overseas epidemic is not over, China has been able to win a phased victory thanks to every Chinese citizen who followed the scientific guidance of the Chinese government, and because the Chinese government listens to and respects the voices of science, experts said.
But US President Donald Trump, leader of the country most ravaged by the virus, is accused by its people of doing very little to contain the virus, as he has largely engaged in smearing China in an attempt to divert public attention as the election approaches.
Trump now is troubled by the upcoming election, domestic riots and economic decline so he has veered back to baseless accusations against China’s virus battle trying to divert attention from the domestic virus control failure, said Wang Guangfa, a leading Chinese respiratory expert at Peking University First Hospital in Beijing. Wang predicted Trump’s latest comments on China will not even ripple in the international community as China’s achievements are evident for the world to see.
Wang noted that aside from the fact that Trump did little to contain the virus, its attitude toward scientists is also responsible for the US’ failure in containing the virus.