The General Office of the State Council, China's cabinet, has
issued an urgent circular urging college students and migrant
workers in Beijing and other severe acute respiratory syndrome
(SARS)-infected areas to stay put in an effort to prevent the
spread of SARS.
The number of SARS cases in parts of Beijing, Shanxi Province and
the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region is increasing. According to
"The Law of the People's Republic of China on Epidemic Prevention",
university students and migrant workers in Beijing and other SARS
infected areas are urged to stay where they are and to keep on
studying and working to efficiently curb the spread of the
infection.
The circular asks universities in Beijing and other SARS infected
areas to adjust teaching and study methods, to strengthen
monitoring and prevention and to contain the spread of the disease.
University professors and student cadres were asked to persuade
students to remain on campus to ensure normal teaching, lifestyle
and school stability.
Working units with large numbers of migrant workers are responsible
for these employees. In the event that a SARS case is detected,
they should provide all possible treatment methods and are
forbidden from sending migrant workers home.
With respect to individual migrant workers returning to their
hometowns, the working units should give them medical check-ups and
notify their hometowns. In the case of workers who have already
returned to their hometowns, the local government should monitor
their health condition.
The circular stressed that all relevant departments should
effectively carry out quarantine, prevention and treatment work on
travelers. Disinfection and quarantine work should cover airplanes,
trains, ships, buses, airports, railway stations and ports. In the
event that a SARS patient is identified, he or she should be placed
in isolation and treated on the spot.
(Xinhua News Agency April 26, 2003)
