There are some similarities between the war in Iraq and the SARS outbreak. For one, it feels like we are living in a war zone, where the biological threat is based on accurate intelligence from the WHO. Fortunately the CIA has nothing to do with the dissemination of information on SARS. Like a war zone, the atmosphere is charged with suspicion and accusations. The slightest cough or sneeze, a trip to Taipei, or worse, anywhere that necessitates flying, is cause for suspicion. Jia Hui had a cold this week and was forced to take two days off work, not because she was a SARS threat, but because of the negative associations that would be made to SARS.

The second similarity to the war in Iraq is the 24-hour TV coverage that the epidemic is getting on Taiwan's TV news channels. However, there is only so much one can say about SARS and so a lot of the time is given over to armchair microbiologists and entrenched correspondents in full surgical gear speculating on causes, cures, preventions and epidemic curves. The rumours that these speculations give birth to only add to the growing public panic.

A positive to come out of this is the greater public awareness of the past few weeks, after an initial period of feet-dragging and a false sense of security. Every public place contains masked security guards who take the temperature of everyone entering the institution. I went to the bank on Thursday and was screened and every morning I have my temperature taken at school before I can enter. Those who refuse to have their temperatures taken are not allowed in. The biggest worry I had this week was when my temperature was 34.4 degrees. I was verging on hypothermic, I think!

Life goes on, panic is not yet necessary and awareness is a constant companion.

9 May 2003

Dion Marc Delport

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