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Letters | Overreaction to the coronavirus epidemic is wrecking Hong Kong and mainland economies
- Covid-19 is contagious and can be deadly. The heavy-handed quarantine measures and travel restrictions in both Hong Kong and the mainland are instilling fear and do more harm than good
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I am saddened by the complete lack of common sense being shown by governments around the world in response to Covid-19.
Although Covid-19 has been spreading rapidly and some people show symptoms, if people take the prescribed precautions – wearing a mask, hand washing, sterilisation – they are unlikely to catch it. I predict there will be fewer cases of winter flu in Hong Kong this year due to the precautions we are taking.
The heavy-handed approach of the mainland authorities is only increasing fear. If it were a case of a few people coming down with the virus, then aggressively quarantining infected patients could work. But with cases in every Chinese province and the virus spreading to a new country every few days, this is an exercise in futility.
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Since it is unlikely that a vaccine will be produced until the end of this year at the earliest, is the only solution to lock everybody into their homes and paralyse the economies of China and Hong Kong in the hope that Covid-19 will decline in the spring? If it doesn’t, are we going to sit at home with fingers crossed until the economy of Hong Kong, then China, then the whole world collapses?
Instead, why not simply carry on taking all sensible precautions and return to normal life? That is what people have done about influenza every winter.
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