【聚焦】美国前州议员致信《上海日报》，高度赞扬中国“抗疫”行动

《文汇报》今天报道，3月3日，《上海日报》收到美国爱荷华州前议员格雷·库萨克（Greg Cusack）先生来信，称赞中国抗击新型冠状病毒肺炎疫情的决心和成绩，并引用《纽约时报》的报道指出，中国的抗疫行动“为全世界赢得了战胜病毒的宝贵时间”。

历史学家出身的库萨克先生是《上海日报》的老读者，长期以来一直义务为《上海日报》撰文，围绕重大国际话题支持中国立场。在来信中，他写道：“我们应该向中国人民，尤其是武汉人民，大声地说谢谢，谢谢他们的勇气和坚强。”

库萨克先生是在阅读了《上海日报》近日发表的评论《Let us stand together to fight the virus》后， 特别写信来感谢中国人民同心协力的付出，以及中国与其他国家守望相助、共同抗疫的大国担当精神。

亲爱的《上海日报》编辑：

自新型冠状病毒肺炎疫情暴发以来，我一直十分记挂中国人民。我由衷地感谢《上海日报》在疫情期间，持续不断地提供专业、准确、详细的报道。我在此也希望《上海日报》的采编团队做好防护措施，保重身体。

近期，我读到《上海日报》评论员王勇撰写的《让我们一起战胜病毒》时评，内心澎湃不已。在此真心地感谢此次疫情中勇于奉献的中国医务人员和社会各界人士，他们身上的那份勇气、耐心和善良值得我们敬佩。致，最可爱的他们！敬，最伟大的逆行者们！

我非常赞成文中写到的，中国积极援助邻国，特别是韩国和日本。这些国家在过去一个月中也向中国提供援助。尽管我们来自不同的国家、不同的民族，但人类是一个命运共同体。我希望，在这次疫情过去后，这份紧密可以延续到不同的领域。让我们通过共同的努力，而不是徒劳的争吵，来达到最大的收获。

《纽约时报》曾多次报道美国医学专家对中国的信心。中国积极应对疫情，为我们乃至整个世界赢得了宝贵的时间，帮助我们做好应对挑战的准备。我们非常感谢中国人民，特别是武汉人民，感谢他们的坚强和勇气。

祝平安！

你们的朋友，

Greg Cusack

Let us stand together to fight the virus

In the ongoing fight against the novel coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19), we are all brothers and sisters without borders. United shall we stand in the face of a new disease human beings have never known before.

Shanghai announced today that it will treat all inbound people on an equal footing. All those entering China through Shanghai will be subject to strict health checks, including thermal tests and filing personal information. Health management measures are also in place at the communities, hotels and companies where the incoming passengers will finally reside.

The announcement came at a time when certain countries have reported a sharp increase in cases of COVID-19. It served to assure the world that the city remains open despite the arduous task of stemming the spread of the virus.

Not just Shanghai, but many other Chinese cities have extended their arms to welcome inbound travelers, though these travelers will also be required to go through strict quarantine checks. For instance, Weihai, a scenic city in Shandong Province, said yesterday that all those coming from Japan and South Korea, including Chinese people, will be escorted to designated hotels for a free 14-day stay. Everyone will live in his or her own room not to be shared with others for a fortnight’s health observance. The Weihai government asked local departments and employees to treat people coming from the two neighboring countries like their own relatives or friends and serve them well with hospitality.

Also yesterday, a spokesman for China’s foreign ministry said at a press conference that China had kept a close eye on the coronavirus epidemic in Japan and South Korea. As neighbors, the three countries should beef up cooperation and help each other, he said, adding that Japan and South Korea have helped China with its fight against the virus, and now China is ready to do what it can to assist the two neighbors according to their demand.

The move by Shanghai and Weihai to treat inbound passengers equally and with a warm heart attests to the need of humankind to stand together as one in the war on the world’s common threat, that is, the new virus.

Wherever we come from and wherever we go, we are one as brothers and sisters. In this war, there’s no place for xenophobia or racism.

Xinhua news agency reported yesterday that Los Angeles County officials had voiced solidarity with China on Monday in its battle against the virus. Kathryn Barger, chair of Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, was quoted as saying that fear of Chinese people in the community was “unfounded” and “unacceptable.” Barbara Ferrer, director of Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, said: “Discrimination that is targeting our Asian-American and Chinese-American friends and businesses is extraordinarily harmful to our entire community.”

In the face of a virus, every man and woman is or possibly is a victim. The epidemic broke out in Wuhan, capital of central China’s Hubei Province, but it’s not the fault of Wuhan people. On the contrary, millions of Wuhan residents have isolated themselves, bearing the brunt of the viral outbreak, so as to prevent the virus from spreading as much as they can. As the World Health Organization expert Bruce Aylward said recently, the world is in debt to Wuhan people (for their sacrifices).

A Chinese girl from Fujian Province, who has lived in Japan for about 10 years, recently distributed about 1,000 face masks for free to Japanese people on a Tokyo street. A video about her holding a box went viral on Monday. On the box was written a few Japanese characters, which mean “A Return of Favor from Wuhan.” (Japanese people have donated a lot of masks and other stuff to Wuhan during its most difficult time in the fight against the virus, an effort that has moved many Chinese people to tears.)

In a subsequent interview with Chinese media yesterday, she said she was not from Wuhan, but at this moment, “every Chinese is from Wuhan."

Hand in hand let’s stand as one without borders, beyond races.