Superpowers have failed – NZ needs new friends
Iadmit, the four-year circus in the United States has produced plenty of laughs. The script is so ridiculous that, had it been presented from a theatre rather than the Oval Office, I would have complained it was entirely unbelievable. President Donald Trump has, I’ll give him this, opened my eyes to what is possible.
If the bleached buffoon can lead the ‘‘free world’’, then why can’t I buy a bach on the moon? Or perhaps it’s an issue that this was possible. The black comedy that is American politics is now no laughing matter. Although the president remains a punchline, the reality is stark and dire. The US is a tragedy.
Despite being warned of a new and deadly disease, the US Government chose not to act to save lives. And therefore, as I write, the death toll moves at pace towards 100,000.
It’s not just been Trump. The traditional superpowers have proven to be so inept at handling the coronavirus that they’re endangering the lives, economies and political stability in their own countries and beyond.
The White House, just like Xi Jinping’s authoritarian management of China, and Boris Johnson’s mismanagement of the UK, shows the world needs new leaders.
Australia is leading the charge to find some answers about how Covid-19 came to be. It’s important to get these answers to prevent history repeating. Although China has since agreed to an investigation, its initial reluctance and its exclusion of Taiwan from the World Health Organisation only worsened perceptions.
The Communist Party’s reluctance, lack of transparency and fear of criticism is, possibly, the reason we’re in this mess.
The first Covid-19 cases appeared at the end of 2019, and a few doctors realised this was a new virus. But local government, loyal to the Communist Party, tried to silence those doctors rather than respond to the outbreak.
Wuhan officials accused Dr Li Wenliang of ‘‘spreading rumours’’ — which is criminal in China. Wenliang, who later died from Covid-19, told the New York Times: ‘‘If the officials had disclosed information about the epidemic earlier, I think it would have been a lot better. There should be more openness and transparency.’’
The West has not reacted any better. Johnson and his advisers managed to avoid all commonsense as the virus spread. He planned to develop ‘‘herd immunity’’ in the UK, effectively condemning large numbers of Britons to death, until eventually falling ill himself.
In the US, well, you have to acknowledge you’ve got an issue before you can solve it. Sometimes it’s unclear if its partisan politics can do even that.
Remember, these are the countries who are meant to be leading the pack. They’re the ‘‘superpowers’’. Without irony, the US president used to be called the Leader of the Free World.
They, almost literally, have all the money and power. And yet, they not only could not stop the spread of coronavirus but their exceptionably bad reactions to it have encouraged its spread.
Whether it’s a superiority complex or a deeper issue, it’s clear the world can no longer rely on its ‘‘superpowers’’ for anything. Those governments can’t even look after their own people.
Among the gloom, there is hope. A generation of smaller, less aggressive and more adaptable countries have done what superpowers cannot. A diverse selection of them have shown the ability to unite against Covid-19. Singapore, Lithuania, Japan, New Zealand, Denmark and Australia are reporting fewer than 1000 active cases.
There are now early talks about opening green zone travel bubbles, to allow easier trade and tourism between countries that can contain the virus.
The green zone concept not only makes sense, but flies in the face of the superpowers that seem to value winning elections and growing business (or in China’s case, maintaining complete control) above life itself. If the green zone countries can band together for the recovery stage of Covid-19, they will be setting a new political course which the world desperately needs.
The success of these countries is down to fundamentals. Unlike China and the US, their governments aren’t afraid of facts. They also made decisions to act quickly to save lives.
As the world rebuilds from Covid-19, it needs to rebuild diplomacy as well. A government that plays coronavirus roulette with its population is not a leader, it’s a major threat.
And New Zealand’s reliance on those countries – which has often seemed to stymie any valid criticism of China and the US in particular – must change. In this time of crisis, where reckless and power-mad men rule the supposed superpowers, New Zealand needs to assert its independent foreign policy. And we need some new friends.
A government that plays coronavirus roulette with its population is not a leader, it’s a major threat.