Top Chinese epidemiologist asks citizens not to touch foreigners to avoid monkeypox, faces backlash
Beijing, Sep 18: A top Chinese health official has warned citizens against having skin contact with foreigners and recent returnees from abroad to avoid contracting monkeypox, triggering a social media backlash for his racist and discriminatory remarks.
China on Friday reported its first case of monkeypox in Chongqing city after a person who arrived from abroad developed rashes while in COVID-19 quarantine.
Following this, China's top epidemiologist Wu Zunyou warned citizens not to have skin contact with foreigners and recent returnees from abroad to avoid contracting the disease.
To prevent possible monkeypox infection, and as part of our daily healthy lifestyle, [I] advise 1) don't have skin-to-skin contact with foreigners; 2) don't have skin-to-skin contact with people who have returned from abroad [in the past three weeks], suggested Wu, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.
He also advised the public not to have skin-to-skin contact with strangers and to use disposable toilet seat covers in public facilities, including in hotels, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported on Sunday.
Wu's suggestions were ridiculed by many Chinese internet users, with some saying that they found them racist and discriminatory .
How racist is this? What about the ones like me who have been living in China for almost 10 years and we haven't seen our families in like 3-4 years due to the borders being closed, an user wrote on Weibo in response to a Global Times post about Wu's recommendations.
Another Weibo user said she found Wu's description very inappropriate .
There are still so many foreign friends working in China. At the beginning of the epidemic, some foreign friends stood up and used social platforms to tell everyone that Chinese people are not viruses', she said.
The user further wrote that Chinese people should not now remain silent when many foreigners are facing discrimination in the country, the Post reported.
Another Weibo user wrote, Is he (Wu) referring to a sexual relationship or just skin-to-skin contact? I guess he meant the former. But it is inevitable to have handshakes when you meet foreign guests. It's also hard to avoid skin contact on the bus.
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WB BJP chief urges state admin to act against violence perpetrators irrespective of party colours
Kolkata (PTI): A day after the BJP's sweeping victory in the West Bengal assembly polls, state party president Samik Bhattacharya on Tuesday urged the administration to act firmly against perpetrators of post-poll violence irrespective of political affiliation.
Addressing reporters after a meeting of the party's top leadership at its Bidhannagar office, Bhattacharya said strict action must be taken against those indulging in violence and warned that BJP workers found involved in such activities would be expelled from the party.
"Post-poll violence would not be tolerated in any form. If anyone from our party is found involved, we will be compelled to remove them," he said.
The BJP leader also appealed to Chief Secretary Dushyant Nariala to ensure prompt administrative intervention wherever incidents of violence are reported.
"I would like to urge the administration to take necessary action wherever such incidents occur. This is precisely why the people of West Bengal have chosen the BJP," he said.
Bhattacharya thanked the electorate for the party's emphatic mandate and expressed gratitude to migrant workers who returned to the state to cast their votes despite logistical challenges.
According to party sources, a high-level meeting was held at the BJP's Bidhannagar office on Tuesday, attended by central observers and senior state leaders, to discuss measures to prevent violence and maintain law and order in the post-result scenario.
The discussions also focused on ensuring that there is no repeat of the violence reported after the 2021 assembly elections, when the BJP had accused the ruling Trinamool Congress of targeting its workers.
The BJP has secured 207 of the 293 seats where polls were held, securing a two-thirds majority and paving the way for its first government in West Bengal. The Trinamool Congress has won 80 seats.
Bhattacharya also appealed to party workers to maintain restraint and not let the victory celebrations turn disruptive.
"I urge our workers to remain peaceful, stay happy, and fulfil the responsibilities given by the party. Do not hurt anyone in the name of celebration, and do not hurt anyone's sentiments," he said.
