EDITORIAL – Lessons from SARS

Chinese officials have apologized for their failure to quickly inform the world of the outbreak of atypical pneumonia. There was improper coordination, the Chinese said, between their disease experts and the government. The impression will always linger, however, that irresponsible Chinese officialdom tried to kill, if not the disease, then surely the story of a new virus that was detected in the province of Guangdong as early as November.

Epidemiologists believe the virus that causes Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome leaped last February from Guangdong to Hong Kong, and from there to Vietnam, Canada and other countries. As of yesterday the death toll stood at 83, with 2,524 people infected in Hong Kong, China and 29 other countries. Of the fatalities, 47 were reported in China and 17 in Hong Kong.

Even when Beijing finally acknowledged that its southern province was Ground Zero for SARS, a team from the World Health Organization had to wait 11 days in Beijing before being allowed to start undertaking studies in Guangdong last Friday. Experts believe the extent of the disease in China remains underreported, endangering both the Chinese and visitors to that country.

In refusing to be open about the problem, what Beijing has apparently feared is happening anyway. The WHO has advised the world against travel to Guangdong and China’s Special Administrative Region, Hong Kong. There are reports of SARS cases in Shanghai, Nanjing and Beijing itself. People are not only avoiding China and Hong Kong but also keeping out people from those two areas, including members of the Chinese circus. Malaysia has threatened to place under arrest anyone who lies about having SARS symptoms, while US President George W. Bush has ordered quarantine — forcible if necessary — for all SARS cases. A travel agent specializing in tours to China described the situation as Armageddon for the travel industry. The worst aspect is that the death toll continues to rise as disease experts scramble to find a cure for SARS.

China could have taken a cue from Hong Kong, which successfully contained the spread of the potentially deadly bird flu. How did Hong Kong do it? By destroying all types of fowl in the former British colony. And more importantly, by acknowledging the full extent of the problem.