Ritu Raj Subedi
The COVID-19 pandemic has turned the global health and economy upside down. As the virus knows no boundary or nationalities, it has hit almost all countries which have been interdependent and interconnected by the means of of globalisation. The pandemic has taught that we are the residents of the same planet and when a big tragedy befalls it, all of its creatures are bound to suffer the consequences.
The global dialogue, cooperation and solidarity are essential to fight the common enemy like novel coronavirus disease that has already taken the lives of millions of people across the world. Against this backdrop, the ‘Shanghai Spirit’ that features mutual trust, mutual benefit, consultation, solidarity, respect for cultural diversity and pursuit of common development is crucial in defeating the pandemic and attaining early post-pandemic economic recovery.
The SCO has been playing a pivotal role in respecting civilisational diversity, supporting the people of all countries in independently choosing the path for development, establishing equal partnerships and safeguarding peace and stability in the region and beyond.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Forum on People-to-People Friendship, which was recently held in Wuhan city, Hubei province of China early this month, has rightly called for carrying forward the ‘Shanghai Spirit’ to deal with the ongoing health crisis of unprecedented scale.
The Forum was organised to mark the 20th anniversary of the SCO that represents 3 billion people from 18 nations. Leaders of SCO member states, observer states, and dialogue partners and representatives of non-governmental friendship organisations signed Wuhan Initiative of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Forum on People-to-People Friendship.
The selection of Wuhan as the venue for the Forum’s activities has sent a positive message to the world that the nations will succeed in stemming the virus with responsible government and science-based approach to the coronavirus. Wuhan has become a model in handling of the pandemic and resuming the social and economic activities.
The Forum stressed solidarity and mutual assistance among the non-governmental organisations of SCO countries the fight against COVID-19 and safeguard the common home of mankind. It has called for promoting common development and making greater contributions towards building a community with a shared future for humanity.
The Forum also adopted the ‘Expert Initiative on the China-SCO Health Cooperation Demonstration Area,’ that focused on the governance of public health security and jointly building a global community of health for all.
In line with the Comprehensive Joint Action Plan of the SCO Member States to Counter the Threats of Epidemics in the Region, the Forum will work to prevent and control infectious and non-communicable diseases, respond to health emergencies through control measures, eliminate the impact of COVID-19 and oppose stigmatisation of novel corona-virus.
In order to gain recovery from the pandemic-hit economy, the SCO members must pursue practical cooperation, deep integration of industrial, supply, and value chains and unimpeded regional economic circulation. At the same time, cooperation is required in the areas such as digital economy, e-commerce, artificial intelligence and smart city so as to raise the economic condition of people. Building a green and open regional economy is equally important. For this, they must promote innovation and forge mutual coordination.
The Forum serves as an important platform to boost harmony and peace among the nations by upholding the philosophy that sub-national cooperation provides a solid foundation and source of strength for the long-term friendship among them. It is based on the notions of equality, openness, justice and mutual benefits.
In his congratulatory message, Chinese President Xi Jinping said: “We should leverage the advantages of non-governmental diplomacy and expand channels for people-to-people exchanges, so as to make contributions to the SCO’s development.”
(Subedi is the Deputy Executive Editor of The Rising Nepal. subedirituraj@yahoo.com)
