24-06-2021
Divya Joyce
www.mediaeyenews.com
There has been a heated debate since last year with a series of theories emerging which aim to explain the possible origin of this notorious coronavirus which is also mutating at a very alarming speed, and has, in turn, led to another point of contestation between the USA and China and their bilateral relations, with China claiming that it is all the conspiracy by the United States, accusing them of “spreading conspiracy theories.”. On 26th May 2021, US President Joe Biden announced that he has asked the Intelligence Agencies to ‘redouble’ their efforts and probe into the origins of a novel coronavirus, which has left around 3.5 million people dead.
This also comes at a time when there is growing international pressure on the need for a proper investigation with the actual data and not a summary of reports or sample data, which China did when a team from WHO came to Wuhan for investigation. With no substantial leads to prove any of the theories which are the possible cause of the origin of the coronavirus alongside a general growing trust deficit vis-a-vis China and WHO amongst nations and civil societies, this is a very important and much-needed development.
Now, this brings us to this juncture – what are the theories which are at the centre of this discourse? Let’s look at them –
1. Origin by animals like bats – This is the theory which is also supported by the report of WHO which was made in collaboration with Chinese scientists, issued on 30th March 2021. However, some concerns like unavailability of the major data required, media reports on 3 Wuhan labs seeking hospital care before the outbreak, China’s reluctance to share the whole information and the very manner in which the report was communicated did not sit well with the international community, especially the US.
2. Origin from Wuhan Lab – This theory suggests that coronavirus is man-made from a Wuhan lab and there are two versions here, either the virus was released deliberately or it was released accidentally. Top scientists are of the view that this theory should not be ruled out because the possibility of this is seemingly prominent. And this is the theory that has drawn sharp contestation from China.
While the lab theory is getting more and more momentum, we will have to wait and see what is the answer to the question everyone wants to know.
