THE TENSION BETWEEN COUNTRYS (Swine Flu)

On May 2, 2009, as many as 70 travelers from Mexico were involuntarily confined to their Chinese hotels and to medical facilities even as they showed no symptoms of the swine flu. Some Mexicans were ushered out from their hotels during late evening hours so they could be tested at medical facilities.
For their part, the Chinese assert that they were simply conducting commonsensical efforts to prevent the spread of swine flu in their territory. It should be remembered that China’s past experience with the SARS epidemic and the avian flu has made it acutely sensitive to this new strain of the swine flu. That said, Beijing denies discriminating against Mexicans. But China’s denials has done little to appease Mexico as Mexican president Felipe Calderon complained that far too many countries like China were “acting out of ignorance and disinformation” and taking “repressive, discriminatory measures.”
Mexico has criticized China for quarantining its nationals unjustly and for allegedly ignoring universally-accepted public health procedures. It hasn’t helped that the Mexican ambassador to Beijing was not allowed to visit a group of Mexican nationals being detained in a hotel in the Chinese capital. Mexican citizens have been detained in several locations in China, including Shanghai and Hong Kong.On May 6, the Mexican government arranged for a chartered jet to pick up their quarantined nationals in China and to repatriate them back to Mexico. According to Mexican officials, there were approximately 140 people on the chartered flight. The passengers assured the media and Mexican officials that they were treated well during their quarantine in China.