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WORLD NEWS Wednesday 29 april 2020

A health worker takes a swab test at a COVID-19 testing
center in New Delhi, India, Monday, April 27, 2020.
A woman and her son wear face masks as they walk on a beach in Badalona, near Barcelona, Associated Press.
Spain, Tuesday, April 28, 2020.
Associated Press.
Easing up: US and Europe grapple with China denies Indian

when to reopen schools claim that Chinese test

By ANGELA CHARLTON, just over a week ago. He said all high school stu- kits are faulty
ELENA BECATOROS and But it was too soon to say dents will have to wear
NICK PERRY whether the easing of the masks, and class sizes will By ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL
Associated Press restrictions was to blame. be capped at 15. Associated Press
PARIS (AP) — The question The number of confirmed Joel Wilmotte, mayor of the NEW DELHI (AP) — China's embassy in New Delhi has
of when to reopen schools infections worldwide stood French town of Hautmont,
looms large as European at more than 3 million — went on Facebook to list denied allegations by the Indian government that
coronavirus testing kits it ordered from China are
countries and U.S. states including 1 million in the seven reasons he is not
draw up plans to restart U.S. — and the confirmed ready to open the schools, faulty, calling the claim unfair and irresponsible.
On Monday, the national Indian Council of Medical
their battered economies. global death toll topped including ill-equipped
Despite alarm among 210,000, according to teachers and cleaning Research canceled an order for nearly 1 million rapid
antibody testing kits from two Chinese companies,
some teachers, parents Johns Hopkins University. staff and opposition from
and mayors, France de- The true toll is believed to parents. Guangzhou Wondfo Biotech and Zhuhai Livzon Diag-
nostics, over concerns about their quality and pric-
tailed plans Tuesday to be much higher because Greek Prime Minister Kyria-
start opening schools on of limited testing, differenc- kos Mitsotakis outlined his ing. It said the kits had "wide variation" in their sensitiv-
ity and asked for them to be returned.
May 11, with limits on class es in counting the dead government's plan for a
size and rules requiring face and government conceal- gradual lifting of the lock- Chinese Embassy spokeswoman Ji Rong rejected
the claim on Tuesday, saying, "The quality of medi-
masks. Hard-hit Italy intends ment. Italy, Spain, France down there, saying high
to keep schools closed until and Britain accounted for school seniors will restart cal products exported from China is prioritized. It is
unfair and irresponsible for certain individuals to label
September. And in the U.S., more than 21,000 virus-re- classes on May 11, followed
where President Donald lated deaths each, while a week later by students in Chinese products as 'faulty' and look at issues with
preemptive prejudice."
Trump said states should the U.S. recorded more lower grades. Elementary
seriously consider resuming than 57,000, the highest in schools and kindergartens She said both companies insist that their kits meet
quality standards in China and that India's National
classes before the end of the world. will remain closed, and
the academic year, doz- Although the coronavirus might open on June 1 "only Institute of Virology had found them to be "satisfac-
tory products."
ens have said it would be seems to affect children far if we are absolutely certain
unsafe for students to re- less seriously than adults, that the course of the epi- She also stressed that there were strict requirements
for storage, transportation and use of the kits. "Any
turn until the summer or the many officials, teach- demic is waning," he said.
fall. ers and parents are con- In Italy, the decision to keep operation which isn't carried out by professionals in
accordance with product specification will lead to
Elsewhere around the cerned about the health the schools closed until the
world, the virus appeared risks that school openings fall could make it harder for the testing accuracy variations," she said.
The ICMR canceled the order after testimony in the
all but vanquished in New could pose. parents to return to work.
Zealand. Australia opened Some point to the difficul- Typically grandparents in Delhi High Court revealed that the Indian govern-
ment had agreed to pay $3.9 million for kits that had
the beach in Sydney. ties of ensuring that chil- Italy are fallback baby sit-
Brazil was emerging as a dren stick to social distanc- ters, but they are now off- been imported from China at a cost of $1.6 million,
with the difference going to Indian intermediaries. In-
new hot spot for infections. ing and frequent hand limits because they are vul-
And new doubts were washing, and to the dan- nerable to the virus. dia's government says it has not yet paid for the kits.
Chinese exporters of medical goods are required to
raised over whether Japan gers for teachers. Emer McCarthy, who works
will be able to host the al- But many parents would in the Vatican's child pro- show that they are approved for sale in their destina-
tion market under rules that were imposed on March
ready postponed Summer struggle to return to work tection office, tweeted that
Olympics next year without without schools being Italian Premier Giuseppe 30 after complaints from several countries about
faulty and sub-standard goods.
the development of a vac- open, hampering efforts to Conte had addressed a
cine. counter the world's deep lockdown exit "for every- On April 10, China said it would inspect every ship-
ment of medical supplies to confirm that they met
Germany, widely praised economic slump. one except Italy's children.
for its handling of the out- French Prime Minister Ed- Incredible. No mention of quality standards. But after concerns that this would
delay exports, regulators in China said on Saturday
break there, reported an ouard Philippe announced schools, childcare options,
uptick in the infection rate that elementary schools will nothing. that producers that meet the official standards of
their destination market can apply for approval
since some small business- reopen May 11 and high But football yes. #Children-
es were allowed to reopen schools May 18. NotSeenNotHeard. "q through an industry association.q