Foreign news

Global online poll shows tracing COVID-19 origins politicized

Published

5 years ago

August 1, 2021

CGTN Think Tank has released a global online opinion poll, in which 80 percent of respondents believe that the issue of tracing of the origins of COVID-19 has been politicized.

Download the full report in PDF: Is virus tracing for COVID-19 politicized?

“Do you think the issue on the origin of COVID-19 has been politicized?” CGTN Think Tank released an online survey on the evening of July 26, Beijing time. According to the survey, 80 percent of the global respondents believed that this issue has been politicized.

The survey is available in several UN official languages, i.e. Chinese, English, Russian, French, Spanish and Arabic, and it was conducted from the early hours of July 24, Beijing time. As of 10 p.m., July 25, among netizens who participated in the survey:

Twitter:

Ninety percent of Spanish-speaking netizens agreed that the origin of COVID-19 has been politicized; 88 percent of French-speaking, 83 percent of Russian-speaking, 70 percent of English-speaking and 68 percent of Arabic-speaking netizens agreed.

Facebook:

On average, 83 percent of English-speaking, Spanish-speaking, French-speaking, Arabic-speaking and Russian-speaking netizens agreed the origin of COVID-19 has been politicized.

Chinese Weibo:

As many as 95 percent of survey respondents believe “the issue on the origin of COVID-19 has been politicized,” showing a high degree of consensus.

The comments left by these global netizens were meaningful. Some English-speaking netizens pointed out that the World Health Organization (WHO) should try to ease the political pressure, and they believe virus tracing of COVID-19 is a political move of the United States to contain the rise of China. Some Spanish-speaking netizens believe that the public opinion about the source of the virus is controlled by major media outlets. A French-speaking netizen left a message saying that the U.S. wants to further sanction China on the grounds of virus tracing. An Arabic-speaking netizen commented that the virus was already politicized during the Trump administration. “This is a lie made up by Western countries and we should not be deceived by politicians,” the comment read. One Russian-speaking netizen said bluntly that this is a fight/war initiated by Western countries.

In analyzing the survey, CGTN Think Tank found certain keywords appeared frequently in these comments: “political pressure,” “U.S. sanctions,” “media control,” “economic compensation,” and “hold back the development of China.”

The second of the three questions in the CGTN Think Tank’s online poll is, “Do you support investigations into the origins of COVID-19 in multiple countries?”

The results of the survey show that 83 percent of the English, Spanish, French, Arabic, and Russian-speaking respondents on Twitter support origin-tracing investigations in multiple countries. The favorability rate on Facebook was 79 percent, while the rate on Chinese Weibo was as high as 93 percent.

In response to the question from CGTN Think Tank, “What is the most pressing task to combat COVID-19 on a global scale?”,a large number of global respondents chose expanding vaccine supply, intensifying medical treatment and imposing a lockdown on the outbreak area among the five options available, namely expanding vaccine supply, intensifying medical treatment, immediately origin-tracing the virus, imposing a lockdown on the outbreak area, and lifting travel ban. They left aside the option of immediately origin-tracing the virus with a high degree of unanimity. On Twitter, only about 17 percent of respondents agreed with immediately origin-tracing the virus, while on Facebook, only 2 percent of Spanish-speaking respondents selected this option.

Although netizens participating in the survey are from different parts of the world, they reached consensus quickly and effectively in their comments. They expressed the same aspirations in different languages. “The investigation of the origin of the virus does not help to solve the problem of pandemic control. This is nothing but a stupid and unhelpful political move to cover up the United States’ attempt to contain China’s rise.”

“I believe that the priority now should be that each country can produce effective and specific vaccines, so that people can make their choices.” “The most urgent task to fight the COVID-19 pandemic is to strengthen testing and tracking, and actively carry out vaccination and drug supply. The international community needs a strong network of vaccine manufacturing.” Arabic-speaking netizens called for global vaccines to be well managed, and hope China continues to provide affordable and quality vaccines to the people around the world.

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Foreign news

Court of Arbitration Declares Indus Waters Treaty Fully Operational Rejects India’s ‘Abeyance’

Published

1 month ago

August 31, 2026

The Gleamer

Cyril Ogar

The Court of Arbitration has unanimously reaffirmed that the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) remains fully in force, ruling that India cannot unilaterally place the 1960 agreement in “abeyance” or suspend its obligations under the treaty.

The decision represents a significant legal development in the longstanding dispute between India and Pakistan over the management and use of the Indus river system.

The Court’s finding addresses a fundamental issue at the heart of the dispute: whether either party can unilaterally suspend the treaty outside the legal framework agreed by both countries.

In its unanimous determination, the Court made clear that the IWT continues to bind both India and Pakistan and that its obligations cannot be set aside through a unilateral political declaration.

The ruling means India remains subject to the treaty provisions governing the use of the Western Rivers, including requirements relating to the design and operation of hydroelectric projects, as well as the dispute-resolution mechanisms established under the agreement.

The Court has also ordered interim measures concerning the Ratle Hydroelectric Plant, restricting specified construction activities while the broader dispute remains under consideration.

The measures are aimed at preserving the effectiveness of the arbitration process and preventing developments that could prejudice the outcome of the proceedings.

For Pakistan, the decision represents significant legal validation of its longstanding position that the IWT is a binding international agreement and contains no provision allowing either party to unilaterally place it in abeyance.

Pakistan has consistently maintained that disagreements over the treaty should be addressed through the institutional mechanisms established by the agreement, rather than through unilateral action.

The IWT provides a structured framework for resolving disputes through mechanisms including the Permanent Indus Commission, Neutral Expert and Court of Arbitration processes.

The latest ruling therefore reinforces the principle that treaty obligations cannot simply be disregarded because of deteriorating political relations between signatories.

The significance of the decision extends beyond the India-Pakistan dispute. It underscores the broader international-law principle that agreements governing shared rivers and other transboundary resources must be respected and disputes resolved through established legal and institutional channels.

The Indus river system supports agriculture, livelihoods, food security and communities across the region, making the stability of the treaty particularly important.

The ruling also highlights the distinction between seeking to amend an international agreement through mutually agreed procedures and attempting to alter its obligations unilaterally.

The IWT has endured wars, prolonged diplomatic tensions and periods of limited bilateral engagement. Its continued operation demonstrates the importance of rules-based mechanisms in managing shared resources when relations between neighbouring states become strained.

For Pakistan, the outcome provides an opportunity to frame the decision not merely as a bilateral legal victory, but as an affirmation of international law, treaty compliance and peaceful dispute resolution.

The central message from the ruling is clear: the Indus Waters Treaty remains in force, its obligations continue to bind both parties, and disputes concerning shared waters must be addressed through the legal mechanisms agreed by India and Pakistan.

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