Photo: thepaper.cn
China's top respiratory disease expert Zhong Nanshan traveled to his old high school in South China’s Guangdong Province to address the school’s students and unveil a statue of himself on Saturday. While some foreign media outlets focused on criticism of the event, many Chinese netizens said they feel the expert deserves the honor.
Saturday was the 132th anniversary of Zhong’s high school. To mark the date, he returned to the school to talk to students about how Chinese medical workers have been fighting against the coronavirus and to encourage more students to study medicine and become doctors.
After the address, he was accompanied by many students and teachers to unveil a bust of himself on campus.
Yao Xunqi, principal of the school, said that the aim of building the statue was to call upon students to learn from Zhong and to inspire them to overcome all difficulties, according to a report from the Paper.
“Every time there is a major national or even international public health event, Zhong has had the courage to speak out, regardless of personal fame and fortune, and only put people's life and health first. He is a real hero,” Yao said.
Some foreign media such as Radio France Internationale reported on the unveiling ceremony on Tuesday, but mainly focused on negative comments about the ceremony.
While some netizens said statues should not be dedicated to people who are still alive, many were speaking out of concern for Zhong.
“Zhong is still alive. As the ancient saying says, a statue may seem like a curse for a living person, it is not good for his health,” netizen Ziseyuanlao wrote on China’s Twitter-like Sina Weibo.
However, most Chinese netizens said they were not worried about superstitions and that Zhong deserves the honor.
“Dedicating a statue to someone who is still alive is common when it comes to celebrities in sports or entertainment. For example, Michael Jordan has a copper statue in Chicago and many stars have wax statues at Madame Tussaud’s. Why can’t Zhong have one?” another netizen Liumushi commented.
Another Sina Weibo user focused on Zhong’s contributions, saying Zhong was the first person to tell the public that the coronavirus could pass from human to human, and helped save precious time in containing the virus. He also made great contributions in fighting SARS years ago.
Zhong, 84, has been hailed as a "national hero in combating COVID-19" by the Chinese public. In September, Zhong was awarded "the Medal of the Republic," the country's highest honor.
He was enrolled in the high school in 1955 and has returned there several times since graduation to talk with younger students.
Global Times