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| World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus attends a news conference on the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in Geneva, Switzerland, Feb. 6. Reuters |
By Jung Min-ho
More than 350,000 people have signed an online petition calling for the resignation of World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus over his "improper" handling of the coronavirus outbreak.
The petition was initiated by a person using the ID "Osuka Yip" on Jan. 31. The petitioner blamed Ghebreyesus' leadership for the rapid spread of the virus, which has killed more than 900 people and infected nearly 41,000 in 29 countries in the past few weeks.
How and when the virus infected the first person, possibly spreading from an animal, in the Chinese city of Wuhan is still unclear. But when the threat was brought to the attention of China's authorities in December and then the world, Ghebreyesus remained hesitant to declare a global health emergency ― until Jan. 31.
"We strongly think Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is not fit for his role as WHO Director-General. We call for the immediate resignation of Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus," the petition says.
"On Jan. 23, 2020, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declines to declare the China virus outbreak as a global health emergency. As we all know, the coronavirus is not treatable at the moment. The number of infected and deaths has risen more than 10 times (infected from 800 ― close to 10,000) within only five days. Part of it is related to Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (who) underestimated the coronavirus."
The petitioner questioned Ghebreyesus' political neutrality, a comment apparently aimed at his repeated defense of the Chinese government's efforts.
"A lot of us are really disappointed," the petition says. "We believe (the) WHO is supposed to be politically neutral. Without any investigation, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus solely believes in the death and infected numbers that the Chinese government provided them."
The WHO said Sunday its advance team of international experts had left for Beijing to investigate the epidemic, nearly two weeks after Ghebreyesus talked with China's President Xi Jinping in late January.
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| World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and China's President Xi Jinping shake hands before a meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Jan. 28. Reuters |
Blow to Beijing's credibility, Xi's leadership
The petition comes as the Chinese government struggles with growing public anger over its poor response to the virus.
Li Wenliang, a Chinese ophthalmologist who was sanctioned by authorities after warning of the virus in late December, succumbed to the disease Friday. His death was immediately met with an outpouring of grief and outrage on social media.
The government has faced accusations of underestimating the risks of the virus and initially trying to keep it secret. Such critical voices later prompted the government to admit "shortcomings and deficiencies" in its response.
Xu Zhangrun, a law professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing, is among the most vocal critics. He said the government's suppression of free expression made it "impossible" for people to respond properly to the virus, according to UPI.
During the crisis, Xi has kept a noticeably low profile.
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