The US Superpower – Viewed from a Village in the Far East

In this tiny country the size of Connecticut, we have a US Embassy, a not insignificant USAid operation (actually our respective offices are separated only by a modest wall), a US Navy engineer’s unit known as “Sea Bees” who train our own army engineers.

For the past 10 years, this hardworking American military rehabilitates health clinics, schools and playgrounds, or build new ones, fix rural roads, build water and sanitation facilities for impoverished communities.

Peace Corps volunteers have been here for 10 years up to March when they temporarily departed at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in the region. It was feared that our tiny country would be overwhelmed by the menacing pandemic. Sometime in March the PC country director Ms. Kavita Pullapilly graciously came to my office to explain that as a precautionary measure the US government was pulling out all PC volunteers from around the world.

I was relieved that these young Americans working and living in remote villages in very precarious conditions were returning to their homes where they would have better care if needed. Now as we read the news on the pandemic wreaking havoc across the US, I wonder whether these young women and men should not have stayed on among their poor host communities in this remote Far East land.

As it turned out, we are among the lucky few countries in the world without Covid-19 fatalities. In March 2020 we closed borders, encouraged hand washing and mask use and banned large events. Though our people are very independent-minded they promptly complied.

In a deeply religious nation of 98% practicing Catholics, Easter masses attract tens of thousands of faithful to the thousands of Churches and Chapels spread all over the country; hence canceling the week-long holly celebrations was not a light decision. Masses were conducted over TV and radio instead.

Since March a total of 30 plus imported asymptomatic cases have been detected and were successfully treated. No fatalities and no community transmission have been registered so far.

We didn’t do it all alone. The UN system, primarily WHO, UNDP, UNICEF and WFP, China, the US Embassy, Japan, and the European Union, Cuban and Australian volunteer doctors, all assisted and worked closely with our own health officials, doctors and nurses.

From afar we followed political developments in the US and the Covid onslaught. And whenever I share information on the global pandemic with communities across my country our simple people were confused how the number one power in the world has been literarily down on its knees hit hardest and humiliated by a tiny invisible virus.