Foreign aid v. charity begins at home

I live in Britain.  We have not long voted for Brexit.  Mainly, it seems, so we can control our borders, locking out foreigners and their influences and just depend on and look after ourselves.

But now we have COVID-19.  Which is showing that none of those reasons for Brexit are worth a dime (which some of us knew anyway).

My only expertise on COVID-19 and virology is what I get from the news: the TV, the papers, the internet.  And given that the experts are learning something new every day, my knowledge is woefully incomplete.

However, there are a few things that so far appear to be agreed upon.  It’s a new virus that humanity has no immunity to.  It is more contagious than the viruses we are used to (such as the common cold and flu).   Death is caused by a form of pneumonia, drowning in your own bodily fluids.  Those with underlying health conditions that lower the immune system and the elderly are the most likely to die (but not exclusively, as younger and healthier people are dying too).  The death rate is relatively small as a percentage of those who contract the virus (so far as we know) even though the actual death rate is rising exponentially.  The development of any vaccine would normally be expected to take 12-18 months (let’s hope this one will be quicker).

What we don’t know (or don’t know for sure yet) is: the long term effects of contracting COVID-19 on the health and immune system even for those who have only mild symptoms or recover; whether or not we can develop immunity or it can be caught again and again; the frequency with which the virus can and will mutate into new forms (it is already believed to have mutated at least once since first discovery in December 2019), and whether or not immunity to one mutation will provide immunity to other mutations (probably not).

What we know is: initially we were too complacent and now the healthcare systems of the ‘advanced’ nations are overrun and not coping with the crisis.  Hospitals are running out of beds and supplies.  Nurses and doctors are overworked and exhausted and scared.

This is a GLOBAL crisis.  It pays no respect to the concept of ‘foreign’.  It requires no visas to cross borders.

COVID-19 is showing us the folly of the cry “charity begins at home” when the matter of FOREIGN AID is raised.

If the health systems of the European nations (including Britain) are struggling to cope then what hope is there for the peoples of nations with less well developed health care systems?

Only the hope of experience.  Southern Hemisphere countries such as in sub-Saharan Africa and China have dealt with serious outbreaks before, such as SARS and Ebola, and these countries have taken or are taking prompt action to stem the spread of the disease.  They know about devastating death tolls.  They know the weaknesses in their healthcare systems.  They know that this time around they won’t be getting any help from the countries with more developed healthcare systems, because those systems are already overwhelmed.  Overrun and underdeveloped healthcare systems will slow down the global progress in beating this virus.  (So too will the denial of healthcare to the poor in wealthier countries such as the US of course.)

When we come out of this crisis (and we have to believe we will) the world will look a more subdued place, at least for a while.

My one abiding hope is that we learn the lessons.  We learn that we are not invincible.  We learn that what we do on this planet not only affects ourselves, our families, our immediate neighbours, but potentially others living in far flung lands also on this planet.  We learn that looking out for our neighbours is another way of looking after ourselves.  We learn compassion and community are values we should treasure, for our own sakes.  We may even (in the UK) come to realise that isolation (Brexit) cannot save us from the invisible enemies.

When we empower others we help them develop skills and resources to look after themselves, and maybe reciprocate that help in other ways.  Giving FOREIGN AID is a positive version of being selfish.

Can you share these hopes with me and carry them forward into the new world?