He was ever so frightened, waking up from his sleep to the sounds of two men arguing. His instincts told him these were bad tidings, bad men. He ran for the dining room table as the men in some strange white dress approached him. Fear ran amok as he ducked to avoid what looked like long, hard object. He scrambled again but there was nowhere to hide completely. Then came the pain, incredible pain, he yelped and cried. More pain, even more intense such that he could no longer stand, and with that the little corgi saw a bright white light approaching him.
The above incident has caught the conscience of China and the world. Last Friday two men in full hazmat suits were caught on a security camera breaking into the homeowner’s apartment and chasing and finally beating to death the dwellers corgi pet. "Did the leader say we need to settle it right here on the spot?" says one, the other replies “yes” and with that they proceed to mash the little dog’s head in the city of Shangrao, in southeastern Jiangxi province.
China’s zero Covid policy requires that even if a single positive case is found in a building the entire building is moved into government quarantine. Of course the security services responsible ensured the owner that her dog would be taken care of as people are unable to take any pets into quarantine with them. They lied! Soon after evacuating the building, government workers broke into her apartment and killed the dog without even testing the animal for Covid.
"The dog tried to avoid the beating and fled into the bedroom, and therefore it wasn't recorded by surveillance camera, but (I) could hear faint wails. A few minutes later, they said they've dealt with it and would take it away, holding a yellow plastic bag in their hands," she wrote in a since-deleted post. Acts like this are not uncommon in China but the video and the words of the owner have hit a nerve even in this strange country. The episode has brought forth fierce criticism from within China and has the local government reeling. Both men were fined and fired from their posts and an official apology was issued to the pet’s owner by the local administrators.
Preventing Covid infection is Chinas highest priority. Their efforts have been quite successful; yesterday China reported 61 infections for a country of 1.4 BILLION people, the US had over 100,000 with less than a fifth of the population. While China has to be complemented for its success one is perturbed by the seeming heartlessness of the Chinese people. Yes there was a time when men pushed little children into gas chambers and then went and had a lovely sandwich for lunch. But we thought society had risen above our barbarian roots over the past 75 years.
For all its economic prowess and success China will never be a great nation until it discovers what it means to be a caring human. It will make fine products while it eats itself from within. There is a reason why SARS, Avian Flu, Covid and countless other pathogens have emerged in China and it’s not because viruses like Chinese food. President Xi, while he consolidates power should well realize, one day a pathogen will emerge that will eat his people as well.
Clearly the people of China have not grown the conscience that most western democracies have since the end of WWII. Our governments are no better but the people have changed from within. To this writer it is also clear that the only changes the Chinese people will abide by are the ones mandated by the government. Waiting for internal evolution is much like Waiting for Gadot, pointless and absurd. It is now in the hands of Mr. Xi and the leadership to change China into a country with morals and a conscience for animals.
