Editing COVID-19 pandemic

[[File:Covid-19_World_Map.svg|thumb|343x343px|Death rate by country as of September 2022]]
The '''COVID-19 pandemic''' is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus which began in December 2019. It has affected worldwide supply chains and a shortage in the workforce in several countries.<ref>{{News citation|journalist=|date=2021-12-23|title=Pandemic caused perfect storm for supply chain crisis, experts say|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/dec/23/pandemic-vulnerabilities-supply-chain-model|newspaper=The Guardian|archive-url=|archive-date=|retrieved=2022-01-12|quote=}}</ref> As of September 2022, over six million people have died from COVID-19 and there have been over 600 million cases.<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Johns Hopkins University|title=COVID-19 Dashboard|url=https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220907160953/https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6|archive-date=2022-09-07|retrieved=2022-09-11}}</ref>

[[Socialism|Socialist]] countries have done a far better job than [[Capitalism|capitalist]] countries in containing the virus and protecting human life.<ref>{{News citation|journalist=|date=|title=Covid-19 and the socialist states|url=https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/f/covid-19-and-the-socialist-states|newspaper=[[Morning Star]]|archive-url=|archive-date=|retrieved=|quote=}}</ref><ref>{{News citation|journalist=|date=|title=The misunderstood—and misrepresented—Zero COVID policy in China|url=https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2021/12/13/chin-d13.html|newspaper=[[WSWS]]|archive-url=|archive-date=|retrieved=|quote=}}</ref>

== By country ==

=== China ===
[[File:COVID vaccine production.png|thumb|China has exported more vaccines than any other country.<ref name=":3">{{Web citation|newspaper=[[Qiao Collective]]|title=Why China’s Vaccine Internationalism Matters|date=2021-04-08|url=https://www.qiaocollective.com/articles/vaccine-internationalism|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408175859/https://www.qiaocollective.com/articles/vaccine-internationalism|archive-date=2023-04-08}}</ref>]]
[[People's Republic of China|China]] was the first country in the world to have COVID-19 infections, and the first confirmed cases were in Wuhan in [[Hubei Province]]. It shared the genetic sequencing of the virus with the rest of the world on 7 January 2020. In late January, China established lockdowns in Wuhan and nearby areas. It designated 86 hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients and built two new hospitals within two weeks. 16 exhibition halls and sports venues were turned into makeshift hospitals, and 42,600 medics were sent to Hubei from other parts of China. China sent medical supplies to [[Italian Republic|Italy]] and [[Islamic Republic of Iran|Iran]], the latter of which is sanctioned by the [[United States of America|United States]].<ref name=":0">{{Web citation|author=Joyce Chediac|newspaper=[[Liberation News]]|title=7 Myths and facts about China and COVID-19|date=2020-03-26|url=https://www.liberationnews.org/8-myths-and-facts-about-china-and-covid-19/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220113104303/https://www.liberationnews.org/8-myths-and-facts-about-china-and-covid-19/|archive-date=2022-01-13|retrieved=2022-09-11}}</ref>

China sanitizes cities and begins mass testing as soon as a single case is recorded. During lockdowns, businesses are still required to pay their workers. In 2021, only two people died from COVID-19 in mainland China in addition to 64 in [[Hong Kong Special Administrative Region|Hong Kong]] and 843 in [[Kuomintang]]-occupied [[Taiwan Province]]. The United States criticized China's measures as "[[Authoritarianism|authoritarian]]" because they prioritized public health over profit.<ref name=":1">{{Web citation|author=Rosa Astra, Benjamin Zinevich|newspaper=[[Liberation News]]|title=Yes, there really were only two COVID deaths in mainland China in 2021. Here’s how they did it|date=2022-01-06|url=https://www.liberationnews.org/yes-there-really-were-only-two-covid-deaths-in-mainland-china-in-2021-heres-how-they-did-it/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220805151305/https://www.liberationnews.org/yes-there-really-were-only-two-covid-deaths-in-mainland-china-in-2021-heres-how-they-did-it/|archive-date=2022-08-05|retrieved=2022-09-11}}</ref>

In November 2022, China eased controls on COVID-19. There were 59,938 deaths in mainland China between 8 December 2022 and 12 January 2023.<ref>{{Web citation|author=卫生健康委|title=国务院联防联控机制权威发布（2023年1月14日）|date=2023-1-14|url=http://www.gov.cn/xinwen/gwylflkjz231/wzsl.htm}}</ref>

==== Vaccine donations ====
China donated 323.3 million vaccines to more than 80 countries. It worked with more than 10 countries on vaccine research and created a vaccine in collaboration with [[Republic of Cuba|Cuba]]. In February 2022, it gave 200,000 Sinopharm vaccines each to [[Republic of Guinea|Guinea]] and [[Republic of Zimbabwe|Zimbabwe]]. In March 2022, it gave 100,000 vaccines to [[State of Palestine|Palestine]]. It also gave 22 million vaccines to [[Mexican United States|Mexico]] and 500,000 to [[Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela|Venezuela]].<ref name=":3" />

=== India ===
The [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)|Communist]]-led [[Republic of India|Indian]] state of [[Kerala]] implemented contact tracing and isolation procedures within a week of the first COVID-19 case. The government of Kerala delivered free groceries to people's houses during the lockdown.<ref name=":2">{{Web citation|newspaper=[[Liberation News]]|title=How a Communist-led government in Kerala responded to the COVID-19 pandemic|date=2020-07-06|url=https://www.liberationnews.org/how-a-communist-led-government-in-kerala-responded-to-the-covid-19-pandemic/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210805081659/https://www.liberationnews.org/how-a-communist-led-government-in-kerala-responded-to-the-covid-19-pandemic/|archive-date=2021-08-05|retrieved=2022-09-11}}</ref>

=== Laos ===
As of February 2022, Laos suffered 135,000 infections and 533 deaths from COVID-19. The death rate in Laos is less than 3% of the U.S. death rate.<ref>{{Web citation|date=2022-02-10|title=A revolutionary salute to the Lao People’s Democratic Republic|url=https://www.workers.org/2022/02/61652/|newspaper=[[Workers World]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220517204840/https://www.workers.org/2022/02/61652/|archive-date=2022-05-17|retrieved=2022-12-27|author=Devin Cole}}</ref>

=== Sweden ===
[[Kingdom of Sweden|Sweden]] kept businesses, restaurants, schools, and sports venues open for more than a year after its first COVID-19 case. Infection rates were seven times as bad as [[Kingdom of Norway|Norway]] and 12 times as bad as [[Republic of Finland|Finland]] and many elderly patients were left to die. [[Right-wing politics|Right-wing]] leaders including [[Jair Bolsonaro]] and [[Elon Musk]] have praised Sweden's handling of the pandemic.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Chris Giddings|newspaper=Red Flag|title=Sweden's hands-off coronavirus model has failed|date=2021-05-03|url=https://redflag.org.au/article/swedens-hands-coronavirus-model-has-failed|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221029163834/https://redflag.org.au/article/swedens-hands-coronavirus-model-has-failed|archive-date=2022-10-29|retrieved=2022-12-21}}</ref>

=== United States ===
The first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the United States was on January 21, 2020. The first deaths were in [[State of Washington|Washington]] in late February 2020.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Sunil Freeman|newspaper=[[Liberation News]]|title=What do 6 months of COVID-19 pandemic tell us about USA?|date=2020-06-03|url=https://www.liberationnews.org/what-do-6-months-of-pandemic-tell-about-usa/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322110004/https://www.liberationnews.org/what-do-6-months-of-pandemic-tell-about-usa/|archive-date=2021-03-22|retrieved=2022-09-11}}</ref> The U.S. government failed to implement measures to contain the virus until March 19.<ref name=":2" /> President [[Donald Trump]] blamed China for the virus, which encouraged [[Racism|racist]] violence against Chinese people living in the U.S.<ref name=":0" />

COVID-19 killed 370,777 people in the United States in 2020 and 476,863 in 2021.<ref name=":1" /> Mortality rates in Native American communities, such as the Navajo tribe, were disproportionately high due to systemic racism and neglect.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Dennis Etler|newspaper=CGTN|title=U.S. treatment of Native Americans is a gross human rights violation|date=2021-03-29|url=https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-03-26/U-S-treatment-of-Native-Americans-is-a-gross-human-rights-violation-YVtGCFbCJa/index.html|retrieved=26/06/2024}}</ref>

==== Misinformation ====
In June 2024, a senior [[United States Department of Defense]] official admitted that that the Pentagon ran disinformation campaigns during the COVID-19 pandemic aimed at discrediting Chinese Sinopharm vaccines in the [[Philippines]] and other countries.<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=CGTN|title=Pentagon ran anti-China vaccine campaign during COVID, finds Reuters investigation|date=22-06-2024|url=https://news.cgtn.com/news/2024-06-22/Pentagon-ran-anti-China-vaccine-campaign-during-COVID-finds-Reuters-1uEaSbGvP5S/p.html|retrieved=26/06/2024}}</ref>  The US government used sockpuppet accounts to spread anti-Chinese propaganda on social media in order to increase the sale of higher-priced western vaccines and maintain [[United States imperialism|its own influence]] , thereby putting political and economic gain before human lives.

== See also ==

* [[Quotes:COVID-19 Pandemic]]

== References ==
<references />
[[Category:History]]