Issue 13
June 26, 2003
Case Study: Fukuoka City's Response to the SARS Situation in Sister-City Guangzhou
By Kazuhiro Yamamoto, Exchange and Cooperation Section Chief, Fukuoka International Exchange Association
Since establishing friendship ties in 1979, Fukuoka City and Guangzhou City have carried out a multitude of exchange activities together. Guangzhou is the capitol of Guangdong Province, for which a travel advisory has been issued in relation to SARS, and as a city directly concerned in the SARS epidemic, it has been playing an active role in fighting the spread of the virus.
The Voice of Citizens
As a result of the SARS situation, exchange activities around Japan have been either cancelled or postponed, and Fukuoka is no exception. The youth exchange project planned for this summer (where Fukuoka was to host youths) was cancelled, and city government staff temporarily dispatched to Guangzhou have returned to Japan.
As SARS cases were increasing in China, a Fukuoka citizen posted the following comment from on Fukuoka City's website: "Isn't there something that we could do for Guangzhou as their sister-city?" After receiving this comment, Fukuoka made the decision to initiate urgent support to lift the spirits of citizens in its sister-city Guangzhou as it dealt with this difficult crisis.
Along with a message from the Fukuoka City mayor to the mayor of Guangzhou, Fukuoka sent 5,000 surgical masks on May 23rd to its sister city. Although some were of the opinion that action should have be taken sooner, this gesture seems to have been received as a welcome one by the local government in Guangzhou, which was concerned that its relations with its counterparts abroad would be harmed by the SARS situation.
Other cooperation and support activities are being initiated among citizens for areas besides Guangzhou. For example, the Fukuoka Lions Club has initiated an effort to send 10,000 masks to citizens in Taiwan, which also is dealing with a serious SARS epidemic.
Future Exchanges Between Fukuoka and Guangzhou
It seems that the worst of the SARS epidemic in Guangzhou is now over and the city is heading toward a return to stability. On June 13, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a report stating that no new cases of SARS had appeared over the last 20 days, which is twice the length of the SARS incubation period. As the SARS crisis continues to subside, most of the general public seems eager to put this episode behind them.
The fact that Fukuoka citizens voiced a desire to help their sister-city as concerns about SARS were rising is an indication of how the spirit of Japan-China friendship has spread among citizens as a result of various exchange activities. Hopefully, this spirit will endure the SARS crisis, and exchange activities between Fukuoka and Guangzhou will continue in an even stronger form than before.
Please send comments/inquiries to grassnet@jcie.or.jp.