Solidarity Wins

By Cristian Pradenas Soto [Chile]

My name is Cristian Pradenas Soto. I am a lawyer with a master’s degree in International Relations and I’m finishing my doctorate in International Politics at Central China Normal University.

For me, Wuhan is my home away from home—I have lived for about 5 years in this city and traveled to many parts of China, from north to south and from east to west. This has allowed me to get to know its people, traditions, and idiosyncrasies.

City Lockdown

Spring Festival is the most meaningful period of time yearly to every Chinese. Nearly all of them will be free from work and spend the 7 days with their relatives. But, to them, especially to the people in Wuhan City and in Hubei Province, the Spring Festival in 2020 was unlucky. An unknown virus hit the land, which put people’s life in disorder. With more and more people getting infected, the Chinese government decided to lock down Wuhan on January 23, and called on all people to combat the virus.

I was calm and I understood that it was a virus that required our serious response. Therefore, the decision to close the city was essential to contain the spread of this virus.

Since the city was locked down, I have been in contact with my family and friends from different parts of the world. Many Chinese friends recommended safety measures and I followed the advice. I prepared myself with supplies, masks, and took preventive precautions. I went out less and sanitized my shoes every time I went out. I wore a mask and practiced constant hand washing every time I handled things.

In the first days of the battle, I understood that it was not Wuhan against the virus, or China against the virus. It was everyone’s duty. People from every corner of the planet had to get prepared.

And on February 2, the international student dormitory was put on lockdown, which meant we had to stay at home and, above all, stay calm and maintain order.

Despite following all the regulations, I felt that I had to do more. So I decided to try a little harder and organized a campaign to help hospitals in Wuhan. Staying at home was not an excuse for doing nothing.

Cristian Pradenas Soto (first from the right) and his schoolmates 克里斯蒂安和他的校友們

我叫克里斯蒂安·普拉德納斯·索托。我是一名律師，國際關系學碩士，現(xiàn)在在華中師范大學攻讀國際政治學博士學位。

我在武漢已經(jīng)住了大約5年，對我來說，武漢就是我的第二個家。這5年我去過中國很多地方旅行，走遍了中國的南北東西。我從中有機會了解了中國人、中國的文化傳統(tǒng)和風俗習慣。

封城

春節(jié)是每個中國人一年中最為重要的時段。幾乎每個人都會放下手中的工作，回到親人身邊共同度過這一佳節(jié)。然而，今年春節(jié)，對所有中國人，尤其是武漢人和湖北人而言，是不幸的。一場突出其來的疫情，徹底打亂了人們的生活。元月下旬，隨著感染者增多，中國政府于1月23日宣布對武漢實施封城，人們被卷入到一場沒有硝煙的戰(zhàn)爭之中。

就我而言，我是平靜的，我知道這是一種需要嚴密防范的病毒，而封城的決定是防止病毒擴散的關鍵之舉。

自從武漢封城開始，我就一直與生活在中國以及世界各地的家人和朋友們保持著聯(lián)系。很多中國朋友建議我注意量體溫，我遵從了這個建議。我給自己準備了防護用品、口罩，并且在日常生活中注意自我保護，我減少了外出，進門后都給鞋消毒，需要的時候戴口罩，每次拿了東西都會洗手。

封城的最初幾天我就清楚，不是武漢抗擊病毒，也不是中國抗擊病毒，抗擊病毒是我們每個人的責任，這個星球的每個角落都必須為此做好準備。

2月2日，武漢外籍學生宿舍采取封閉式管理，開始了全面隔離，我們不能離開宿舍樓，這就意味著我每天只能閉門不出，最重要的是，我要保持鎮(zhèn)定和自律。

我遵從了所有規(guī)定，不過我覺得自己還應當做些更有意義的事情。所以我決定再多做一點努力，發(fā)起一次幫助武漢醫(yī)院的行動。每天待在一棟樓里無法外出，這絕不是我袖手旁觀的理由。

募捐

出于這一想法，一次向武漢醫(yī)院發(fā)起的募捐行動開始了。我處在隔離之中，但好在有社交網(wǎng)絡、有朋友們的支持和交流，我得以建立一個社交圈，和各界人士協(xié)調(diào)工作。

我和幾個熟人在網(wǎng)上交流，和幾家醫(yī)院的管理人員取得聯(lián)系，由此開始了募捐行動。我不論花費多長時間，一天天堅持向各方求助，每一件事都要考慮周到，每當覺得疲憊了，就會想起我們以前在這座城市做過那些公益活動，于是我就會精神一振，更加相信自己的付出一定會得到更多人響應。有意提供幫助的人在增多，我設法和他們協(xié)商。一項來自意大利的捐款，通過公益集資平臺“GoFundMe”得到了激活；我的一位智利同胞募集到2500 個口罩；我還和老家智利阿里卡市的一個企業(yè)家活動組織取得了聯(lián)系，他們在智利建立了一個捐贈點，并且繼續(xù)尋找其他募捐方式。

如果沒有人們的捐贈、沒有便利的物流和各方面的高效工作，我們的所有這些努力都將是徒勞。捐贈的急需用品不能等，到達越快越好，所以我聯(lián)系了很多醫(yī)藥用品銷售商和制造商，直至最終找到這一環(huán)節(jié)的恰當人選。

物流運送到達后，募捐任務才算完成，這時我就可以設法清點物資并且安排分配，我無法離開宿舍樓，所以只能依靠整個運作網(wǎng)絡的快速行動。

Cristian in his dorm 克里斯蒂安在留學生宿舍

Donation Campaign

This is how the donation campaign for Wuhan hospitals got started. Though in isolation, I was able to build a network and coordinate actions with the help of social networks and friends. I started by talking with some of my friends online and then managed to contact some heads of hospitals. Then I began to raise money, day by day. Everything added up. Every time I got tired I remembered other campaigns that we had already launched in the city. At the time I managed to connect more people who wanted to help: from Italy a donation account was activated through GoFundMe; from Chile a compatriot gathered about 2,500 masks. I also contacted the organizer of an entrepreneur activity in my hometown of Arica, Chile. The organizer helped set up a donation point, and continued looking for ways to raise money.

All these efforts would be futile if there were no suppliers and logistics providers who are efficient at work. Much-needed supplies can’t wait. They should be delivered to the hands of those in need in no time. I contacted many sellers and providers of medical supplies and selected the right ones.

A donation can be completed only when the supplies arrive. Then I would focus on distribution. Since I could not leave the building, I had to rely on the efficiency of the network.

As a result, the first batch of supplies arrived: 10,000 masks and 500 pairs of gloves. The second batch to another hospital included about 120 protective suits and 2,500 masks from Chile. So there were a total of about 12,500 surgical masks and KN95, 120 protective suits for medical personnel, and 500 pairs of gloves for two hospitals in Wuhan.

That is how I understood how important unity is—every effort added up because this help along with hundreds of volunteers in the hospitals, the people in their homes and neighborhoods made it possible for us all to beat the virus. Each shipment of medical supplies also meant hope and joy to whoever received it.

Being a foreigner does not exclude us from feeling part of Wuhan, and supporting those who for several months defended our fellow citizens in hospitals is worth the effort.

Daily Life

During the quarantine in the bedroom I had time to fine-tune the final details of my thesis that I am close to defending. My thesis has already been delivered and I await the call to defend it. I maintained a daily exercise routine and practiced yoga. I kept in touch with my family and friends in Chile. I tried to responsibly report what was happening here and make the rest of the world understand that the measures taken need to be applied and we should learn from the experience in China.

I studied hard, and shared my thoughts with fellow citizens and my roommates. We took precautions and tried to lead life as normal as possible. Our university delivered meals to us and took care of us very well. I must admit that home quarantine was essential to keeping the university as a safe area without cases of infection. Our dorm supervisors cared for us, just like our parents. Volunteers were organized to provide us with daily needs. They also kept us wellinformed. I am very grateful to all of them.

On April 8, the doors of our dormitory were opened as lockdown was lifted and today we could go out to get supplies at scheduled times. We have also begun to resume life, but we must take necessary preventive measures.

It should be understood that the epidemic is not over. So it will take quite a while for the entire planet to heal. The first battle was won, but we cannot drop our arms yet if we want a shared victory soon.

Finally, I must be thankful for this life experience in China—it gave me practical knowledge about what to do during an outbreak and how to beat the virus.

Every day, I try to share what has been done here with my friends. Epidemic respects no borders. The whole world is fighting against COVID-19. There is no need to distinguish age, sex, lineage, or condition. Human beings must help each other and with solidarity, order, and unity we can finally beat this virus.

第一批捐贈物資分配到位，包括10000 個口罩、500 副手套。第二批捐贈的物品是給另一家醫(yī)院，包括來自智利的大約120 套防護服和2500 個口罩。全部物資大約是12500 個外科口罩和KN95 口罩、120 套防護服和500 副手套，這些物資捐贈給了武漢兩家醫(yī)院的醫(yī)護人員。

這次募捐令我明白團結協(xié)作的重要性。每一份努力都很重要。我們的募捐也正是因為許多人的團結協(xié)作而最終實現(xiàn)。它和醫(yī)院中成百上千的志愿者、隔離在家的人們和小區(qū)工作人員的努力凝結在一起，令這場戰(zhàn)疫的最終勝利成為可能。而每一份援助都不僅僅是防護用品本身，更代表了一種希望、一種欣慰。

我在中國是一名外國人，但我仍然覺得自己是武漢的一分子，應當參與援助那些幾個月來保護武漢同胞的醫(yī)護人員。毫無疑問，我們的努力是值得的。

日常

我的期末畢業(yè)論文已經(jīng)提交，正在等待參加答辯，在宿舍樓里隔離的日子，我有時間對即將到來的論文答辯進行細節(jié)調(diào)整。我每天堅持運動，練瑜伽，并且和遠在智利的親朋好友保持著聯(lián)系。我如實向他們講述發(fā)生在中國的事情，讓世界其他地方的人知道，他們可以從中國學到寶貴的抗疫經(jīng)驗。

我每天努力學習，與智利同胞和其他室友分享我的心得。我們在日常生活中按防護要求行事，在做好自我防護的基礎上盡可能保持正常生活。我們的大學供給我們一日三餐，關懷無微不至。隔離在宿舍盡管無法自由外出，但必須承認，隔離是讓我們的校園保持安寧、不受病毒傳染的關鍵。學校的“師傅”們?nèi)缤改敢话?，每天照顧著我們。志愿者也組織起來滿足我們的日常需求，并且及時提供信息。我非常感激所有這些人的關懷。

4月8日那天，我們的宿舍樓解封了，我們計劃好了這一天出去轉一轉，做一些想做的事情，我們也開始了正常生活，不過還是要遵守學生的所有安全和保護措施。

我們必須要明白，抗疫行動仍在進行之中，要想全世界恢復安寧尚需時日。我們首戰(zhàn)告捷，但是此時仍不能掉以輕心，這樣我們才能盡快共同迎接勝利。

最后，我必須慶幸自己在中國度過了這次疫情時期，這段時間給了我切實經(jīng)驗，我知道了疫情期間應當怎樣生活，以及如何才能征服這次新冠病毒。我打算每天向智利同胞傳遞經(jīng)驗。

疫情不分國界，現(xiàn)在是全世界在抗擊COVID-19。我們無需區(qū)分年齡、性別、種族或者貧富，全人類都必須以團結、有序和協(xié)作的精神互相幫助，這樣我們終將能夠戰(zhàn)勝這次病毒。（譯/孫開元）