2 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
What were 2 Chinese scientists who took a pathogen into the US thinking?
Of course American authorities are deliberately hyping up their case against two Chinese researchers for allegedly trying to smuggle into the country an 'agroterrorism agent' that is commonly found across the US.
It fits right into Washington's fierce propaganda campaign that makes many Chinese-born researchers and students in the United States automatically suspect, and turns China effectively into an enemy state.
The Chinese side has condemned the charges as 'political manipulation'. The Chinese consulate in Chicago said it had lodged a 'stern representation' with Washington.
All well and good. But I have to ask, what were those two researchers thinking? I know some scientists live in their own intellectual bubbles, but are those two completely oblivious to what's going on in these politically sensitive times, especially about crossing borders into the US?
Even ordinary foreign visitors have been expelled or detained for weeks before being released for … well, for nothing. This is American border control now; its arbitrariness has in fact severely impacted tourism.
Did the pair not worry about carrying a biological specimen through US airport security?
Chinese citizens Jian Yunqing, 33, a research fellow at the University of Michigan, and her partner, Liu Zunyong, 34, have been charged with trying to smuggle the fungus Fusarium graminearum into the US last year. Jian is facing trial in the US, but Liu remains at large and is believed to be in China.
