MEXICO CITY, May 10, 2009
Mexico-China Relations Bitter Over Flu
Mexico Pulls Out Of Trade Fair After China Withdraws "Guest Of Honor" Status; China Reports First Mainland Case
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In this photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, Chinese citizens wait for boarding at Benito Juarez International Airport in Mexico City, capital of Mexico, May 5, 2009. (AP Photo/Xinhua, David De la Paz)
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Already angered by China's quarantining of dozens of Mexican travelers, flight cancelations and a ban on its pork imports, Mexican officials said China had withdrawn Mexico's "guest of honor" status at the May 19-21 food fair.
It was part of a wider series of snubs by many nations that has left Mexico — once the epicenter of the swine flu epidemic, but now surpassed in total cases by the United States — feeling unfairly singled out.
"The recently adopted measures by fair organizers and the Chinese government are unacceptable," said a statement from ProMexico, the government's agency that promotes foreign trade. Thirty Mexican companies had planned to participate.
Mexico reported Sunday that 13 Mexicans remained in quarantine in China and one in Singapore. Last week Mexico chartered a flight to bring home dozens of its citizens from China, but it was unclear if the Mexicans mentioned Sunday had been placed under restrictions since the flight.
The Mexican protests came as China confirmed its first case of swine flu on the mainland.
An official with the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said the 30-year-old patient is in stable condition. The official — who spoke on condition of anonymity citing standard practice — says 130 other people from the patient's flight have been quarantined. The patient, surnamed Bao, was studying at the University of Missouri.
China has been accused in the past of not acting quickly enough to combat the spread of diseases, especially the 2003 global outbreak of SARS. Chastened by that experience and subsequent threats from avian flu, the government this time acted quickly and strongly in trying to block an outbreak, but some of its measures have been criticized as excessive.
China defended the steps as necessary to keep swine flu out of the world's most populous nation. Mexican officials protested that their citizens were singled out based solely on their nationality, noting dozens were quarantined when they arrived whether or not they had been in contact with sick people or even not been in their homeland during the flu outbreak.
Meanwhile, the number of swine flu-related deaths outside Mexico inched up to five with the U.S. reporting its third fatality and Costa Rica its first, both involving men who also had underlying illnesses.
The number of confirmed cases of the infection in the U.S. has risen to 2,532 in 44 states, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Sunday.
The U.S. man was not further identified. He began showing symptoms on April 30, and was treated with anti-viral medication. Dr. Gary Goldbaum, Snohomish Health District medical director, said medical officials hadn't been able to isolate any "risk factors" for the man to identify where he might have been exposed.
Mexico had been planning to showcase its pork products at the Shanghai fair, and China's withdrawal of its guest of honor status fed a growing sense of grievance at anti-flu measures aimed at the Latin American nation, especially flight bans, quarantines and trade bans against its pork products.
President Felipe Calderon lashed out last week, saying "some countries and places are taking repressive and discriminatory measures because of ignorance and disinformation."
Many Mexicans wondered why — with the total of U.S. cases at 2,532 and Mexico at 1,626 — countries like Argentina that were quick to prohibit flights from Mexico were not doing the same with U.S. flights.
Argentina "didn't close its airports to flights from the United States, the country with most flu cases," columnist Gerardo Galarza wrote in the newspaper Excelsior on Sunday. He said the difference in spending power between Mexican and U.S. tourists "explains the insult."
Mexico's Foreign Relations Department said over the weekend that it had pressed Argentina, Cuba, Ecuador and Peru to drop restrictions. The snubs from fellow Latin American nations were particularly painful.
"We see it as a tragedy of brother against brother. It surprises me a lot to see Latin American countries behaving this way toward their brothers," the papal nuncio, Monsignor Christophe Pierre, told local media outside Mexico City's Basilica of Guadalupe.
Calderon said last week that Cuba's ban on direct flights from Mexico might endanger his expected trip to the island to mend the two countries' frayed relations. "Given that Cuba has banned flights from Mexico, perhaps I am not going to be able to go," the president told a local television station.
Amid the new international frictions, crews were working up to the last minute disinfecting Mexican schools in preparation for Monday's return to classes by students in most of the country.
The government had hoped to get all children back in class, but six of Mexico's 31 states announced they would delay the reopening of schools for another week amid a rebound in suspected flu cases in some parts of the country.
Nationwide, swine flu has been confirmed in 1,626 people, of whom 48 died. Suspected cases were reported after those numbers were released Saturday, but the government offered no new count on confirmed cases Sunday.
© MMIX The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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See all 23 CommentsTHAT MEAN WE WILL NEVER SEE BURRITO WITH RICE HAH...
Posted by vietnamwar at
I wish!
THAT MEAN WE WILL NEVER SEE BURRITO WITH RICE HAH...
both countries lack in resourses and accountability.
What happens to the virus depends on these two countries getting along , being transsparent, working together .
Yeah no wonder the scientists community is calling a alert.
I contend that the workd health organizations are reacting to this scernio more than just the actual virus now because they know how futile the chances are the virus not mising.
.
SUGGESSTION TO MEXICO, NEXT TIME CHINESE GOT SARS, JUST SPRAY LEAD PAIN ON THEM AT THE AIRPORT.
Disease and public health are nearly always on the top of the priority list on the most densely populated countries.
There are no countries who would like to trade places with either Mexico or China on the events listed in this report. Humane treatment of people is how a country is often judged.
Mexico made a deep commitment to stop the spread of the virus at expense of their economy for one week, citing that people are more important than money during a public health crisis. Such a decision draws international respect and admiration.
The Mexicans that travel to China are wealthy and much healthier than average Mexican citizens, so their treatment during the public health crisis encounters a different challenge.
Many citizens of the USA view Mexicans are impoverished, deeply deprived and generally unhealthy - based on the flood of immigrants searching for work around the world. This makes a poor stereotype. Most Mexicans are not as television portrays them on FOX.
If a US citizen actually went into Mexico and learned about their people and their customs and cultures, the views would change, but too many people in the USA have a closed mind - thanks to FOX TV, and flaming personalities on the airwaves.
China has much more experience dealing with public health problems than the USA and Mexico. Mexico City, Shanghai, Bejing, are populated with over 22 million people each.
A public health crisis can always pop an ego quicker than any war, or economic crisis. A virus exhibits no discrimination of citizenship, economic status or social strata of its' host.
Posted by american_11-2009 at 6:28 AM : May 11, 2009 --
Don't blame Latin America...blame the IMF/World Parasites, the Federal Reserve System and British-style 'free trade' and 'globalization' policies.
You too will soon be an 'economic refugee' who you now call 'invaders'.
Posted by DaVicar5
They're really just economic competitors...........Competing for American made jobs again the American worker.
Our government does more harm & is an more serious threat to American Citizens & the future of this Nation than any of the terrorist organizations or diseases like Mexican Swine flu!
Our Politicians keep telling us our Immigration laws are broken and we need an comprehensive solution, which are code words for Amnesty, our Immigration Laws are not broken, what is broken is our Political system when we elect Corrupt/Pandering politicians that puts votes ahead of American Citizens or the future of this Nation!
Our government fails the most basic and primary task & duty of government, to protect this Nation and its Citizens from invasion and enforce its laws.
They refuse to abide by our Constitution, refuse to enforce our Immigration Laws and refuse to honor their Oath of Office!
Our Government, past & present, Republican & Democrat, have allowed the invasion of 20 to 40 million criminals and uneducated peons which is the largest invasion of any Nation, at any time, by any means & in direct violation of Article IV, Section IV of our Constitution. This refusal to abide by our Constitution or enforce our Immigration Laws should be classified as Treason of the most foul kind, & as grounds for impeachment & trials for Treason!
Not only have they allowed the invasion, they force American tax payers to pay Billions on Billions of dollars to provide Welfare, Prison cells, Educate the invaders numerous children, and free medical care, at the same time the invading horde break numerous laws and massive document fraud, & are destroying our schools, hospitals, communities, culture and standard of living while Robbing, Raping, Killing & Assaulting American Citizens at an rate the terrorist can only dream about.
Recent statements in Mexico from both President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary something needs to be done. "Our inability to prevent weapons from being illegally smuggled across the border to arm these criminals causes the deaths of police officers, soldiers, and civilians," she said.
But no mention or concern that their refusal to stop the Massive Invasion of Illegal Aliens pouring across our borders or enforce our immigration laws that causes an estimated 25 Americans deaths per day and 10,s of thousands victims of Assault, Robberies, Rapes, Identify thief, and other assorted crimes committed by the invading horde of Illegal Aliens from Mexico on American citizens each year!
Most of our Politicians in Wash. DC are wading knee deep in innocent American blood and suffering because they put Politics ahead of the welfare of American Citizens & the future of this Nation! The Welfare vote for the Democrats to further their Socialist Agenda and the Slave Labor for their Pay Masters in the Chamber of Commerce & Business for the Republicans is more important to our Corrupt /power mad Politicians than the lives and safety of Americans citizens!
This government & most of the Politicians in Wash. DC have for years demonstrated an complete lack of concern for the devastation and havoc caused by the Massive invasion from Mexico and South American! Indeed, most have worked much harder on the behalf of the invading horde than they have for the American citizens that elected them & the Politicians took an Oath to serve!
Since people have been suckered into sacrificing local agriculture and local livestock raising for the glory of global 'commodities' markets, any one of these laboratory diseases could spread easily throughout the world.
We are all going to die because we insist on defending the British Empire of 'Globalization and Free Trade.
It's stupid and it's dangerous.
t paticularly care for country that supports slave trade and inhumane treatment of other humans. I donpt buy anything from asian countries. I don't shop at wal-mart fallapart stores. nor do I support charities that take money from wal-mart fallaprt corporation. HOW CAN A TRUE AMERICAN ON SUNDAY ON BENDED KNEE PRAY TO THIER GOD TO SAVE THE U.S THEN LEAVE THIER CHURCH AND GO TO WAL-MART FALLAPART STORE AND GIVE THIER MONEY TO A FORIEGN MERCHANT?/ I DON'T CONSIDER THIS AMERICAN AND I SAY ALL VETERANS OF FORIEGN WAR WHO SHOP THERE ARE TEASONIST AND SHOULD BE HUNG BY THE FAMILIES OF THE DEAD SOLDIERS THAT FOUGHT AGAINST COMMUNISM.
Mexico, with hopes of gettin to the US.
I must say, the best chinese food I've ever had was in Gudalajara.
Posted by gravyboat45 at 10:42 PM
What a great post!
China's largest export is people.
Chineeze are usually diplomatically demanding with an underlying current of
discrimination.
Mexico and other latin countries have been to stupid to realize this.
Unfortunately, this will not open their eyes.
See the story about the Ecuadorian oil problem and the side note was a
problem with a pipeline owned by the CHINEEZE.
Do we get the picture?
Sadly, no.
China has 1,300,000,000 people ,if this unwanted H1A1 flood over this country ,what will happen then? the gov of china is doing what they must be ,anyhow ,from 2003 ,SARS has always given chinese people a deeply memery ,but other country not.
Now ,let us see what the Mexico gov has done ,absolutely they did not enough ,the virus catchs people one by one ,of course ,USA ,her neoughour ,is the first "beneficiary".
Don't repine NOW,it's time to going fighting NOW.
How about USA then?
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