Many nations are vigorously implementing mass vaccination and as we approach herd immunity, is the end of the Covid-19 just around the corner? I hope so. Vaccination is said to be the most effective method to put an end to diseases. Covid-19 would be no exception. However, this applies only to individuals. What about a society? What makes it immune to a pandemic? While medical vaccines are made by pharmaceutical companies, it’s up to us to make a vaccine for society. Pandemics are a routine event in human history. In this century, we successfully controlled infectious diseases such as the severe acute respiratory syndrome, Middle East respiratory syndrome and so on. Why did only Covid-19 run amok? At the early stage of the outbreak, which is the most critical time in preventing infectious diseases, efforts against Covid-19 were politicised. The country where Covid-19 was first detected was subjected to finger-pointing. International collaboration is the most vital element in the global prevention against a pandemic. But collaboration cannot operate where “my country first” sentiment dominates. Export bans and the hoarding of basic protective products propagated fear worldwide. Where fear prevails, there is not much room for reasonable behaviour. Scapegoating fuelled xenophobia and racism. Many countries reserved vaccines several times more than their population while low-income countries lacked even minimum doses for survival. What is the point of sealing off one’s cabin while the Titanic is sinking? The core of pandemic response is collaboration, not competition. Politicisation and needless competition stopped us from learning from others’ best practices and appreciating their contribution to the Covid-19 fight. In addition, the prompt and aggressive prevention methods adopted early on in some countries gave the rest of the world more time to prepare. In these countries, trust in the government and among citizens, aided by technology, enabled a sound regimen of testing, contact tracing and treatment. In sum, we must avoid politicisation, selfishness and needless competition but encourage cooperation and build trust – these are the ingredients of a vaccine for society. As fire is needed when we churn a magic potion, the ingredients shall be boiled with the fire called a sense of community. The fire of community spirit will boil down the ingredients into what is written in huge font at Tiananmen: “Long live the great unity of the world’s peoples”. As long as we stand united like one family, we will be immune to any virus no matter how contagious and devastating it is. Seung-ho Kim, Republic of Korea consul general in Shanghai (The views expressed are his own and do not represent those of his government) Hong Kong’s working parents need urgent help As working parents, my husband and I have been trying since July to arrange for a helper from the Philippines to come and help take care of our five-year-old daughter. With only two quarantine facilities available for arriving domestic workers, we are really losing hope of getting our helper on board within the next two months. Some rooms at the Penny’s Bay quarantine centre were made available on Monday after the booking system reopened, but all the rooms were gone in five minutes and our agency couldn’t get a room at all (“Coronavirus: 200 extra quarantine rooms for Hong Kong domestic helpers booked in minutes, infuriating employers who missed out”, October 4 ). Being able to secure a room would appear to be more difficult than winning Mark Six . Government officials should be fully aware that helpers’ overseas employment certificates and visas have expiry dates. Renewals can take up to four to six weeks. However, amid these difficult circumstances, there appears to be no coordination at all between the Labour and Welfare Bureau and the Immigration Department. Officials can simply establish a system to screen helpers and prioritise the accommodation booking according to these expiry dates, instead of having employers, agencies and helpers in the Philippines all running around to keep renewing these documents without any defined timelines. It is not rocket science. I urge our government officials and IT experts to put themselves in our shoes and sense our desperate need for foreign domestic workers to come take care of our elderly and young children so we can focus on being the breadwinners. We need leaders who understand what we are going through and address the issues promptly and wisely. Otherwise, we can only keep praying for a Mary Poppins to be sent to each of the Hong Kong families in need. Margaret Li, Tai Koo Make Victoria Park great again Tammy Yeung spelled out my dream, and perhaps also the dream of many other Hongkongers, to have a picnic in a nice park like Central Park in New York (“Let’s rewild Hong Kong, one park at a time”, October 1 ). How refreshing to take a linen cloth from the kitchen, place it on the manicured grass and sit surrounded by hulks of wood and the calls of the birds. Imagine strolling in a tunnel of Bauhinia trees or exploring nature’s wonders in a creek – these are the kind of wonderful excursions we all need amid a hectic schedule. Our Victoria Park is a filthy grass patch with hardly any view to offer. It is like having a slovenly drunkard drop by Causeway Bay. Strolling across the park conjures up the image of a parched desert. Someone in government office must revive the park and make it a proud Hong Kong landmark again. Edmond Pang, Fanling