For months, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome spread unchecked in China. It comes on like the flu. It’s known to be highly infectious and can be fatal. Around the world, the fear of SARS has also caused severe economic repercussions.
In China, the disease is already causing political unrest. The new leaders of the Chinese Communist Party have come under intense criticism for failing to move quickly enough or, for precious months, even to acknowledge the existence of SARS. Now they are heading up a high profile public campaign against the disease, but it’s still not clear if they acted in time to ensure the health of the people and cover their own political future.
Guests:
Ross Terrill, Author, “The New Chinese Empire”, Research Associate, Fairbank Center for East Asian Research, Harvard University
Dali Yang, Author, “Beyond Beijing: Liberalization and the Regions of China,” Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Chicago
Rob Gifford, NPR correspondent, Beijing.