Chinese grass roots back Pakistanis up amid COVID-19

Beijing: Pakistani volunteers stayed in China to fight the novel coronavirus when our country was stricken by COVID-19. It is high time that we lend a hand to our iron-clad friends since they are in trouble now, said Zhu Min, a Chinese volunteer who offered to collect Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Pakistanis.
Virus does not respect borders. As Pakistan and more countries have come together to fight the COVID-19 outbreak, a common enemy of mankind, Chinese grass roots are taking actions to support their Pakistani friends, China Economic Net (CEN) reported.

Ali Qadir, a Pakistani student studying in south China’s Nanjing City, posted a WeChat Moment for help on March 19, saying that he wants to collect epidemic prevention supplies for his fellow countrymen in Quetta, the capital of Balochistan, Pakistan.

Pakistan shares a 960-kilometre-long border with Iran – one of the countries hardest-hit by the disease – with the main crossing point set at Taftan in Balochistan.
According to Ali, the majority of Pakistan’s COVID-19 cases are linked to those who went on pilgrimage to Iran. The Taftan border has been closed since March 16, but thousands of Pakistani pilgrims who were visiting religious sites in Iran have been allowed to return with a subject to two weeks’ quarantine.

“My elder sister phoned me that my uncle was infected by the coronavirus,†mentioned Ali, adding that many of his fellow countrymen have returned from Iran since March 5, and PPE is far from enough.
“Nanjing is my second home. I hope people can help us purchase some PPE,†he said.

Noticing Ali’s appeal, Chinese volunteer Zhu Min lent a hand to collect epidemic prevention materials for him the moment she knew it. Goggles, gloves, surgical masks, protective clothing… “We are aware that Quetta reports manyy COVID-19 cases, so we reposted Ali’s Moment and collected some PPE for our Pakistani friends,†Zhu noted on March 23.

“Hello, friends in Pakistan! Thank you for donating masks to us before, now it’s time to help you back. Welcome to Xiamen when you have time off, Yao Yang, an 8-year-old girl from southeast China’s Xiamen City, recently spent her pocket money to buy 80 masks for children in Pakistan and wrote a thank-you note to them.

Yao Yang was told by her parents that Pakistan donated all of its inventory masks in hospitals nationwide to China when it was hard-hit by COVID-19.
Hearing this, little Yao offered to buy masks and donate them to children in Pakistan with her 100 pocket money without hesitation. To encourage the little girl, Mr. Yao and his wife gave her 200 more to buy 80 masks in total.
Together with the letter of thanks, the masks were sent by express mail to the Pakistani Embassy in China.
In addition to those warm words, Yao also drew three children holding hands and wearing masks on the note, one of whom was herself. Yao wishes children in Pakistan a good health.

Aid is also seen in the land of Pakistan. A Chinese girl distributing masks in Islamabad was seen roaming around in the streets of the federal capital and won hearts with her kind gesture in a time of need.
In an interview with a news outlet, Niyu Chung, working with an IT firm in Pakistan, said that she noticed several people were not taking precautionary measures against the deadly disease.

Therefore, she decided to present surgical masks to every passerby and encourage them to observe social distancing.
In a video on the Internet, Niyu can be seen handing face masks to pedestrians, bike riders as well as traffic sergeants. “ We (are) all in this together and by being united we will definitely bring the pandemic under control soon,†she said on Twitter.