Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan: the real coronavirus world leaders
- Governments across Europe and North America have showed an almost callous disregard for the health of their citizens, and the world
- In Asia, meanwhile, oases of single-minded purpose have sprung up, sincere in their efforts to ‘flatten the curve’ of transmission
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The citizens of Europe, and to a lesser extent the US, are now paying the price for their leaders’ inaction, with Italy reporting more than 2,500 deaths, Spain more than 500, and the UK and US both surpassing 100.
As the world burns with infection though, oases of calm are springing up: Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong are all showing single-minded purpose and sincerity in trying to “flatten the curve” of transmission. The statistics show a stubborn resilience among these communities, reflected in a low case count and death toll. One common strand is the memory of 2003’s deadly severe acute respiratory syndrome epidemic – these communities learned their lessons from that deadly outbreak and were quick to put plans into action when the next one rolled around.
Hongkongers, in particular, didn’t wait for government orders to act. They displayed their public spiritedness when a filmmaker started a mask factory, helping to produce hundreds of thousands of pieces of protective gear at just HK$1 a piece. Such ground-up actions spurred businesses into action to source and donate face masks.
And for those who say messy democracies can’t act quickly and decisively, just look at Taiwan. Despite the self-ruled island being closely linked to China, where 850,000 Taiwanese live; having trouble with international organisations like the World Health Organisation; and having a political system described as fractious, it has managed the crisis very well. It was alert in putting up measures like health checks on passengers from Wuhan well before most of the world woke up to the havoc the virus could cause.
Singapore’s story, meanwhile, is a well-publicised one. With politicians, civil servants, scientists, businesspeople and citizens all marching to the beat of the same drum to keep the virus at bay, the country has received accolades from the world community with even The Economist praising its efforts.
It also scored on two other fronts: science and diplomacy. Huge investments in science meant test kits capable of detecting the virus were produced as early as January, helping Singapore carry out 21,000 tests so far.
It has also been quick to use what Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan called test-kit diplomacy, offering the kits to countries that need them most. All that Singapore has to do now is show that it will not cash in on the crisis by holding its impending general elections in the next couple of months.
P N Balji is a veteran journalist in Singapore. He is also the author of the book, Reluctant Editor: The Singapore Media as Seen Through the Eyes of a Veteran Newspaper Journalist
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