China News Service, Beijing, March 20th: Overseas Chinese stay in Italy to fight epidemic: "If you stay, then help"

Author Wu Kan

In the past few days, the epidemic of new crown pneumonia in Italy has continued to develop. When the overseas Chinese were "home-stayed", Zhou Jianhuang, director of the Milan China Help Center, was always busy, helping the overseas Chinese to solve their difficulties, and delivering goods to Italian hospitals ... … Recently, he accepted an online interview with a reporter from China News Agency to talk about his life in the epidemic.

"My restaurant was closed on February 23." Zhou Jianhuang said that after Italy's first domestic case of new crown pneumonia was released, the number of customers in Chinatown in Milan decreased significantly. By February 24th, 80% of Chinese merchants in Chinatown were closed. Now, only a few takeaways are still open. "Although the government did not require restaurants to close at that time, the Chinese have a stronger sense of prevention and took measures in advance."

Return to China or stay in China? Zhou Jianhuang and most of the Chinese friends around him chose to stay behind and consciously isolated at home. "The order of life here is normal. In the supermarket next to my house, the categories of food and daily necessities are even more abundant than usual. Now we go out to bring a 'self-declaration'. Everyone wears a mask, and the supermarkets have adopted restrictions. Flow measures. "

Zhou Jianhuang told reporters that the current news shows that more than 30 overseas Chinese in Italy have been diagnosed with new crown pneumonia. Most of them are from Zhejiang, and most of them have been admitted to local hospitals. In addition, there are several minor cases. According to the regulations of the Italian government, I am quarantining and taking medicine at home by myself.

"Italy is working to fight the epidemic across the country. They treat Chinese and Italians equally." Zhou Jianhuang said that although the sharp increase in cases now puts tremendous pressure on Italy's medical system, it is operating in an orderly manner.

In order to help the distressed overseas Chinese, Zhou Jianhuang has been working in the Milan China Help Center. On March 14, 4,600 cases of anti-epidemic materials from Zhejiang aid to Italy arrived in Turin, Zhou Jianhuang and colleagues went to the warehouse to organize the materials, and then returned to Milan for distribution.

In order for overseas Chinese to get supplies as soon as possible, Zhou Jianhuang suggested that various Chinese communities publish a “requisition form for materials” in WeChat groups. Overseas Chinese fill in the form to declare what they need and how much they need, and the staff will make a distribution after the statistics. Most of the overseas Chinese came to collect the supplies by themselves, and there were some older or inconvenient people, and the overseas Chinese delegation brought them to their door.

Zhou Jianhuang received a call from a 70-year-old overseas Chinese couple for help. Their masks ran out, and the food stocks were almost finished, because the old couple did not dare to go out to buy food without a mask. "I asked them to send me the location of the home. I quickly drove over and gave the old couple 30 emergency masks."

Not only the Chinese notch, but also the Italians. On March 17, Zhou Jianhuang and his friends went to Milan Chinese Street again. They put every ten masks in an envelope and gave it to the Italian people passing by. "We will continue to send masks. Now the overseas Chinese are doing their best to help the Italian people. Some people quietly put the masks in the mailboxes of the neighbors in Italy, and some donated the home heater to The medical staff in the tent ... "

Zhou Jianhuang told reporters that last week he and his friends shipped 600 sets of protective clothing to the Niguada Hospital in Milan. In the past two days, he had to transport 26,000 medical gloves donated by overseas Chinese to this hospital. "If you stay, then help. Italy is the second hometown of our overseas Chinese. Only Italy gets better, and the overseas Chinese can be better, so we must help!" (End)