# 818
The announcement that China has another H5N1 infected human, this time a soldier in the PLA, has raised a good deal many questions. Thus far, we have very little in the way of answers.
China remains closed-mouthed about what goes on within its borders. Often, it is weeks before they admit when they have an outbreak in poultry, or a human case. Their first reaction, historically, has been to deny they have a problem.
Their reluctance to share information on SARS in 2003, and the tragic results that ensued, should be a reminder that diseases know no borders, and China's problems can quickly become a problem for the rest of the world.
All we know right now is that a soldier, supposedly stationed in the Fujian province, has tested positive for H5N1. Those he has been in contact with are being monitored, although we have no reports of any spread of the illness.
This from AP news.
WHO: Bird flu continues to be public health threat in China as new case reported in military
By AUDRA ANG
Associated Press WriterBEIJING (AP) -- China's latest reported case of bird flu - a soldier - has left questions about how he contracted the virus and shows that the disease remains a public health threat, the World Health Organization said Monday.
China's Health Ministry announced Saturday that the 19-year-old soldier who was hospitalized May 14 with a fever and a cough had contracted the H5N1 bird flu.
The announcement did not further identify the soldier or how he might have contracted the disease - questions the WHO said it was pressing the Health Ministry to answer.
Joanna Brent, the WHO's spokeswoman in Beijing, said the ministry told the health body Monday that the soldier was stationed in the southern province of Fujian but did not have any more details.
"One individual H5N1 case is not in itself cause for alarm but its occurrence shows that the virus is still circulating and a continuing public health threat," Brent said.
According to her, the ministry also said Monday people who had close contact with the soldier were under medical observation but showed no signs of disease.
"Again there's been a human case without a poultry outbreak warning and so there needs to be strengthened surveillance," Brent said.
The number of cases reported by China, given their immense population, is small compared to other countries where H5N1 is endemic. Many people, including myself, doubt we are getting the full story. Their piecemeal dispersal of virus samples, and information, does little to promote their credibility.
As a sovereign nation, China has a right to deal with internal problems as it sees fit, but as a member of a greater world community, it has a responsibility to do more than protect its own interests. China needs to take openness and transparency seriously.
Until that happens, China remains a black hole of information to the rest of us. And that endangers everyone on the planet.
