Mexico-China Relations Bitter Over Flu

Mexico Pulls Out Of Trade Fair After China Withdraws "Guest Of Honor" Status; China Reports First Mainland Case

(AP)  Mexico's government on Sunday called China's treatment of its citizens unacceptable and said it would not participate in a Shanghai trade fair in a dispute over anti-swine flu measures adopted by the Asian giant.

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of dozens of Mexican travelers, flight cancelations and a ban on its pork imports, Mexican officials said China had withdrawn Mexico's "guest of honor" status at the May 19-21 food fair.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.

[gravyboat45]

Mexico-China Relations Bitter Over Flu.

THAT MEAN WE WILL NEVER SEE BURRITO WITH RICE HAH...
Posted by vietnamwar at

I wish!

[vietnamwar]

Mexico-China Relations Bitter Over Flu.

THAT MEAN WE WILL NEVER SEE BURRITO WITH RICE HAH...

[cdegolier]

Mexico was snubbed because the flu most likely began there. Americans who became sick had recently visited Mexico.

[janieanddeb]

It fun to watch these two countries fight it out. Lots of under currents here , both countries supply cheap labour , both poor both have a mixing pot of a dangerouse virus because of cheap labour and lack of inspections both have large scale farming . Both supply a percentage of the world food suppies.

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.


.

[vietnamwar]

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

SUGGESSTION TO MEXICO, NEXT TIME CHINESE GOT SARS, JUST SPRAY LEAD PAIN ON THEM AT THE AIRPORT.

[vietnamwar]

Chinese people are so SELFFISH, what about the chicken Virus H1N1 come from HK years ago ???

[dgal878]

Mexico, you're a blight on the world. Regroup, get your act together, become an asset to your citizens and your neighboring countries,and then you will be valued as you desire.

[pensacola8-2009]

Whenever you make an international treaty with another country, you are obliged to it.

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.

[whitemale08]

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!
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'.

[omega39-2009]

It's certain that the Chinese economy will now cruble, without all that money they make from trade with Mexico!
Posted by DaVicar5

They're really just economic competitors...........Competing for American made jobs again the American worker.