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ForChina Reports Spike in
SARS Cases, Deaths
By JOE McDONALD, Associated Press Writer
BEIJING - China reported a jump in SARS deaths
on Sunday and a tenfold increase of infected people in
the capital — an embarrassing admission that cost the
health minister and the Beijing mayor their Communist
Party posts.
Struggling to stop the spread of the disease,
officials canceled a major weeklong holiday in May,
when tens of millions of people usually go on vacation.
The demotion of Health Minister Zhang Wenkang and
Beijing Mayor Meng Xuenong came shortly after
officials held a two-hour news conference to announce
the sharp increases in SARS cases.
The Communist Party is the true power in China, and
Zhang's and Meng's party posts were far more important
than their government offices. Their loss left the two
men greatly diminished as political figures and could
foreshadow their demotion or outright dismissal from
government.
Zhang lost his post as secretary of the leading party
members' group of the Ministry of Health. Meng was
removed as the deputy secretary of the party's Beijing
Municipal Committee.
The government said Sunday the flu-like illness has
killed 12 more people and that the number of
infections in Beijing has soared from 37 to 346.
The new figures raised China's total number of deaths
to 79 and its cases to 1,814, Gao Qiang, an executive
vice health minister, said at a news conference.
"With such a situation, with more than 300 patients in
Beijing, the situation is already very serious," Gao
said. He added there were 400 more suspected cases in
the capital.
Gao also made a rare admission that his ministry was
not properly prepared for the outbreak. The ministry
"has not given out clear instructions or effective
guidance," he said.
But Gao denied reports that SARS cases were
intentionally hidden from investigators.
"We have not discovered any locality or place that has
intentionally hidden these statistics," he said. "Any
such act will be severely punished."
In recent weeks, several nations have urged their
citizens to avoid unnecessary travel to China. However,
the Chinese government continued to encourage the
public to stick with plans to go on vacations during
the weeklong May Day holiday, which was to start May
1.
Marking a major shift in how China is viewing the SARS
danger, Gao said that officials were canceling the
vacation period, which has been extended in recent
years to boost the travel industry and encourage
consumer spending.
Tens of millions of increasingly affluent Chinese now
take trips during the break. The cancellation means
people will have to work or go to school instead.
"The purpose of such an act is to prevent the massive
movement of people and the possible spread of the
disease," Gao said.
He acknowledged that the advisory could deal a big
blow to China's economy.
"I'm sure this measure will mean massive losses in
tourism revenue, but people's lives and health had to
be put above everything," Gao said.
The illness eventually identified as severe acute
respiratory syndrome was first reported in southern
China's Guangdong province in November. Gao said that
46 people have died in Guangdong.
So far, officials have not detected the spread of SARS
in large rural areas, he said. He noted that farmers
have lower incomes and less access to medical care. If
the outbreak hit the countryside, "the consequences
would be grim," he said.
The death toll continued to climb in other countries
as well. In Hong Kong, Health officials announced
seven new deaths, for an 88 total, and said they were
re-evaluating the drug treatment for SARS patients.
Indonesia deployed troops from an army brigade that
usually deals with natural disasters to help nurses
and doctors in conducting health checks of Indonesian
workers returning from SARS-hit countries.
A SARS outbreak at Singapore's largest wholesale
vegetable market raised fears that the virus has moved
beyond hospitals and into the community at large.
Dozens of police in face masks cleared the market late
Saturday night and put up barricades.
In South Korea , health authorities considered putting
a ban on blood donations by people for 10 days after
they return from SARS-hit China, Hong Kong, Singapore
and Vietnam, although there was no evidence the virus
can be transmitted through blood.
A 99-year-old man became the 14th death in Canada from
SARS. The country's largest trauma unit was closed to
new patients after four staff members began showing
symptoms, amid warnings that the virus is taking a
heavier toll on younger, otherwise healthy patients.
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