Bearing true faith to their legacy of manufacturing substandard products and then exporting the same throughout the world, China is now playing with the lives of millions of people, in an attempt to expedite the revival of their economy. Manufacturers with no history or expertise in medical equipment production are now producing masks, PPE’s, rapid testing kits and even ventilators.
One is better off without a mask, than with a Chinese mask on. Masks have a huge demand in Asia, to counter the effects of pollution and to resist dust particles, unlike Europe and America, where it is almost awkward for the people to wear the same. Multiple reports have now indicated that the production of facial masks is done in particularly unsanitary conditions in China. This has blown the wits out of many countries, as China has already exported close to 3.86 billion masks worldwide.
Chen Guohua (pseudo-name), a Chinese broker who facilitates the export of masks told news outlet Tech World that 60 percent of factories don’t have sterile work environments. He further revealed that the factory workers were not wearing gloves and masks themselves while handling the commodities. He recalled how the factories he visited had no sterile work environment, and that nobody would dare to use these masks if they were aware about the conditions they are manufactured in.
Some footage shows workers not using gloves when handling masks being processed on a conveyer belt, while another video shows a man wiping his shoe with a bunch of masks piled on the floor.
不戴手套，不穿工作服，个人衣服随处一堆，纸箱乱放，这就是罩在口鼻的最后一层防护，武汉肺炎有无症状感染者，穿着羊毛衫，光着手，你知道他携不携带病毒。不戴没事，戴了中枪才是悲剧。买好的吧，N95.对自己好点，不行自己做。旧口罩带剪下来缝在毛巾上就是口罩，放心。欢迎大家来看推特五毛多猖狂。 pic.twitter.com/HiBdYTC1ny
— Volvic (@Volvic73345688) April 6, 2020
The novel Coronavirus can survive on mask surfaces for as long as one week! Therefore, it is very likely that if the mask is produced in an environment where COVID-19 affected individuals, even if asymptomatic themselves, are the one’s handling the product, then by the time the virus nears its threshold longevity, it would have infected the user of the mask in some other part of the world, and found itself a host.
With the phenomenal upsurge in demand of specific medical equipment, China has emerged as the sole supplier, since it is the only country which has overcome the pandemic (or so it says). With an aim to kick-start their economy after months of dull, China sees an opportunity to establish itself as a global hegemon, by capitalizing on the Wuhan Virus pandemic which it unleashed on the world, in complacency with the WHO.
Having undergone a long and absolute lockdown, China would be looking at reviving Wuhan’ and the Hubei Province’s economy as well, which is why it wouldn’t come as a surprise to see the bulk of manufacturing occurring in the worst affected provinces, which would also bring along with it a greater threat to humanity. Only yesterday, China lifted the lockdown in Wuhan. It is only expected for them to now ramp up the industries again so as to minimalize the economic impact of the disease on their people.
Further, in a bid to revive its economy, China is allowing the manufacturers to have the final, and only say. As a result, norms are being flouted in broad daylight, with a textile manufacturer in Shanghai calling it a big ‘madhouse’. Factories that have quickly changed their production lines to make masks are demanding 50% payment when an order is made and the other 50% before the masks leave the factory, all while charging the buyers flamboyantly. The situation resembles one of an auction, where the highest and fastest bidder is supplied with the products first. This, in complete contrast to laid out guidelines and precedent.
What is shameful is that China would stoop so low, that it would not even pretend to care about human life outside their borders (not that they care of lives within their borders too). To this effect, China has been caught exporting redundant and faulty medical equipment worldwide, again, bearing true faith to their ‘Made in China’ tag. Only that this time, China is being overtly substandard, and their products are being called useless even before first use.
As per a report by Taiwan news, out of the 1.5 lakh test kits China sold to Czech Republic, 80 per cent were reported to be faulty.
The Dutch government has ordered a recall of around 600,000 masks out of a shipment of 1.3 million from China after they failed to meet quality standards. An inspection revealed that the FFP2 masks (European equivalent of the N-95 mask) did not protect the face properly or had defective filter membranes. The fine filters stop the virus from entering the mouth or nose.
Similarly, Turkey and the Philippines too discarded the rapid testing kits they bought from China, as the accuracy rate was found to only be 40%. Spain had found out that 6,40,000 testing kits it bought from China did not work accurately.
China’s unsanitary practices, whether in its wet markets, or in the factories, are costing the world a great deal. What started in the wet markets of China can now be seen culminating in their factories, as they continue to put humanity at risk due to their own callous behaviour. It is beyond doubt clear that Chinese products cannot, by any means, be used in these times of crisis. What is required, is a boycott of China, for putting the world in the mess it is in, and then trying to profit from the resulting global chaos.
Also, do NOT use Chinese masks!
