TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — In its situation summary on the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) posted an erroneous map that includes Taiwan as a part of Communist China.
On Tuesday (Jan. 21), the CDC posted the situation summary on the China coronavirus, which is referred to as the “2019 novel coronavirus” or “2019-nCoV." In the summary, the CDC mentions that, in addition to China, cases of the virus have been confirmed in Thailand, Japan, and South Korea, but it fails to report on the important fact that the first case in Taiwan had been reported that day.
Although the CDC described the outbreak of the virus as a "serious public health concern," it did not see fit to mention the fact that the deadly disease has spread in Taiwan. On the list of measures it has taken in response to the outbreak, the CDC also fails to report any steps taken to coordinate with Taiwanese airport authorities or airlines and gives no guidance for U.S. travelers to Taiwan.
Another blunder by the CDC includes the placing of an accent mark over the "e" in "Taipei." In addition, the map only highlights Hubei Province, where the disease first emerged, and fails to point out the other cities and provinces were cases have since been reported, such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen.
Beyond showing a disregard for the lives of Taiwanese, the CDC is also potentially putting U.S. citizens in harm's way by not advising them of the situation on the ground in Taiwan. Twitter users were infuriated by the CDC's apparent appeasement of Beijing while showing a lack of concern for the country of Taiwan:
"Hey-@CDCgov, not sure why the map you used includes Taiwan as a part of China. Official US policy is not to take a position on the status of Taiwan and as a US government entity, I would expect this position to be honored."
"Because for too long, even healthcare is Political when the CCP feels insecure. The tendency to hide facts is their specialty. Why would we expect any different when it comes to global disease control?"
"And the feelings of 1.4 billion Chinese people are hurt by the different colour used in mapping Hubei."
"Maybe they consider China to be part of Taiwan."
Hey- @CDCgov, not sure why the map you used includes Taiwan as a part of China. Official US policy is not to take a position on the status of Taiwan and as a US government entity, I would expect this position to be honored. https://t.co/ywdDJPE0Sv
— Jessica Drun (@jessicadrun) January 22, 2020
Flawed CDC map showing Taiwan as a part of China.