Lend ears to China’s voice, please

US China Coronavirus

The pandemic is helping to understand a few facts of the current state of geo-politics. One of these facts is China’s voice – voice with all its meanings.

China has called for international cooperation against COVID-19, popularly named coronavirus, to tide over darkest hours. China has said: Cooperation and solidarity are the most powerful weapon to prevail over the epidemic. The country has said, which is significant, a “political virus” is spreading in the US to use every chance to attack and smear China. The country said: China is not a savior, but is willing to be a friend in need and a sincere partner. The country expressed hope: The darkest time will pass, and the light is ahead.

These statements were from Wang Yi, China’s Foreign Minister, the country’s voice in the geopolitical arena.

On May 24, 2020, Wang Yi said at a press conference, on the sidelines of the third session of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s annual national legislative session, in Beijing: The novel coronavirus is the common enemy of mankind.

However, Wang Yi has not forgotten to mention the hostile attitude of a part of imperialist/rightist forces to China: The “political virus” of some politicians losing no chance to attack and smear China is now spreading in the US. Some politicians ignored the basic facts and made up countless lies and conspiracy theories concerning China. Such lies have been recently compiled into a list and posted on the internet. The longer the list, the more it says about how low the rumormongers are willing to go and the more stains they will leave in history.

It’s China’s stern message, which has been delivered at a time when a number of US politicians launched repeated attacks against China’s measures to fight the coronavirus.

The extreme rightist/extreme conservative group blames China for the group’s inefficient and mismanaged measures in own country, which is a show of capitalist profit interest. The group even filed lawsuits for their claimed so-called compensation.

While expressing sympathy to the US with the highest number of coronavirus infections in the world, the Chinese FM said: “I want to say here: Don’t waste any more precious time, and don’t ignore lives.”

He said: Having claimed so many precious lives, COVID-19 serves as a stark reminder that countries must rise above differences in geography, race, history, culture and social system. “What China and the United States need to do the most is to first learn from each other and share their experience in fighting against the epidemic, and help each country fight it.”

China has called for cooperation and communication to mitigate the impact of COVID-19. Wang called on countries to stand “shoulder by shoulder” and seek positive cycles of mutual success, dismissing narratives of a “knock-out race” in which there is but one winner.

The one winner is the people fighting the pandemic.

Wang said: The US and China should start to coordinate and communicate over macro-policies as early as possible to reduce the impact of the disease on both economies and the world economy.

“China has always advocated that, as the world’s largest developing country and the largest developed country, both of us bear a major responsibility for world peace and development,” he said.

It’s noteworthy that China has not given up its position: a developing country largest in size.

The Chinese FM shed light on relations/cooperation with Russia, Europe, Japan, South Korea, Africa. The areas for cooperation mentioned by the Chinese FM include energy and e-/cloud-economy.

Wang said the impact of COVID-19 on Belt and Road cooperation is “temporary and limited”, and the cooperation will be strengthened.

Wang also offered his strong support for the World Health Organization and its chief, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, frequent targets of US criticism. “To support the WHO is to support saving lives. This is the choice any country with a conscience should make”, he said.

China, it should be mentioned, as part of its fight against the pandemic, has mounted the largest ever-global humanitarian operation in decades. The country has shipped medical supplies to nearly 150 countries and four international organizations to meet their immediate needs. It has exported 56.8 billion masks and 250 million protective suits, among other provisions.

The pandemic-time has seen nosedive of China-US relation. The US regularly throws accusations against China: Cover-ups and lack of transparency in fighting the virus in the city of Wuhan.

Last month, the US state of Missouri became the first US state to sue the Chinese government over its handling of the coronavirus, saying China’s response to the outbreak brought devastating economic losses to the state.

Wang said such lawsuits lacked any legal basis.

“The China of today is not the China of a century ago, and nor is the world,” he added. “If you want to infringe upon China’s sovereignty and dignity with indiscriminate litigation, and extort the fruits of the hard work of the Chinese people, I am afraid this is a daydream and you’ll only humiliate yourself.”

The world’s most powerful imperial power has not heard this voice from China years ago. This voice, the changing power-position on the stage of geopolitics, should be taken into consideration by all including that power that considers itself the greatest in the world. But, certain ultra right groups and certain left groups in countries fail to take note of this voice. So, the ultra right engages Guaidos in countries, and those left groups extend their hands of cooperation to the Guaidos in countries. Both of the groups fail to understand that the global power matrix is changing; and, those left groups fail to understand that joining the Guaidos, if they only consider tactical aspect, is a losing game in today’s world. They should lend their ears to China’s voice and tone. China is not making hollow sounds. Only years ago, there was no stern message from China to the world imperial power. Only years ago, the imperial power was the sole “authority” to issue “human rights reports”. But, those days have passed away. Now, China issues human rights report every year, which exposes the human rights situation in the Empire, and which the rightist/imperialist “rights” groups ignore. Similar other developments including the development concerning the WHO are there.

And, if those left groups consider strategic aspect, they will understand that joining Guaidos will be identified in history as an act of betrayal as Guaidos’ only role is to further imperial interests. Those left groups should check with their rightist Guaido-friends: Shall the friends take anti-imperialist position while marching for democracy? In today’s world, the march for democracy can’t move forward without taking anti-imperialist stand in any country, irrespective of hemispheres, irrespective of regions, irrespective of level of development – developed or underdeveloped, irrespective of type of democracy – bourgeois or neo-colonial or plundering or invasioned, or so-called liberal or illiberal, in whatever way one likes to identify. Now, it’s the choice – prudence: to be, or not to be a betrayer. And, at the end, all betrayers lie on muck as clowns of political drama. In Baanglaa, since the days of Plassey in 1757, betrayers are named Meer Jaafar.

Farooque Chowdhury writes from Dhaka.


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