Coronavirus: Missouri sues Chinese government over handling of virus
The Midwest state of Missouri has launched a lawsuit against China for the economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
It says the economic losses is a direct result of the Asian state’s response to the original outbreak in Wuhan.
The state’s attorney general Eric Schmitt filed the complaint, alleging that Missouri has lost tens of billions of dollars due to Chinese negligence in tackling the disease.
In a statement, the Republican lawman said: “The Chinese government lied to the world about the danger and contagious nature of COVID-19, silenced whistleblowers, and did little to stop the spread of the disease.
“They must be held accountable for their actions”, he added.
Schmitt also accuses the Chinese government of exacerbating the pandemic by “hoarding” medical supplies such as personal protective equipment, which is in scarce supply around the world.
Earlier in the pandemic the US federal government sent nearly 18 tons of such equipment to China to help its pandemic response.
Although China is already facing legal action from US companies, Missouri, which is demanding cash compensation, is the first state to take such steps.
Political ‘cover up’?
Legal experts said that they thought the action would likely fail due to a doctrine called sovereign immunity.
Under the law, foreign governments have protections against legal action in US courts.
Tom Ginsberg, professor of international law at the University of Chicago, said that the legal action was probably a political move to steer attention away from criticism of Republic president Donald Trump’s handling of the pandemic in the US, the world’s worst-hit country.
The disease has now killed more than 43,000 people in the US.
“We are seeing a lot of people on the political right focus on the China issue to cover up for the US government’s own errors,” Ginsburg said.
Initially, Trump played down the severity of the disease and praised China’s handling of the outbreak.
More recently, however, he has taken to referring to the disease as the “China virus” in an attempt to deflect criticism.
Trump’s chances of reelection in November may hinge on how well people think he has handled the pandemic.
According to pollster Gallup, Trump’s approval rating, which enjoyed a boost towards the start of the pandemic, is now down at 43 per cent.
In response to the lawsuit, China’s foreign ministry spokesman said China’s handling of the outbreak was not under the jurisdiction of US courts.
Geng Shuang said: “Such abuse of litigation is not conducive to the epidemic response at home in the United States and also runs counter to international cooperation.
“What the United States should do is refute and reject such abuse of litigation.”