CONTEXT

• Recent article “The origin of COVID: Did people or nature open Pandora’s box at Wuhan?” was published in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
• The work has made a strong case for a fuller investigation into the Origin of Covid-19 epidemics.

WHAT IS THE ARTICLE ABOUT

• The article talks about a collusive cover up of the possible leak of the novel coronavirus from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV). 

THEORIES FOR THE ORIGIN OF COVID EPIDEMIC

• As per China, the virus spread from a wet market (seafood and animal market) in Wuhan. The United States seems to concur with Chinese opinion.
• Present article points to possible leak of the novel coronavirus from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV)
• The virus has also been linked with the US. There are allegations that coronavirus related research in the WIV was funded by American money.

 CONSPIRACY THEORIES DEMANDS INVESTIGATION

• • With advances in biotechnology, it is now possible to genetically engineer existing pathogens to make them more lethal and difficult to treat. Hence an investigation is needed to stop countries from developing Biological weapons.
  • One of the researchers of the EcoHealth Alliance obtained grants from the U.S. National Institutes of Health and subcontracted research to a group at the WIV. US funding was done to ensure that it can have access to the experiments conducted at the WIV.
    • Since, the coronavirus related research in the WIV was funded by American money hence they will be skeptical about anything being pointed towards them.

• US silence on the issue should not be the reason for other countries to not demand an investigation on the origin of Covid.

• • WIV operates at a deficient Biosafety level-4 (BSL-4) which has been flagged by U.S. inspectors.
    •  Facility does not have appropriately trained professionals.                    
    • There  is no record of any remedial action taken in WIV despite the issue being flagged      by US agencies.
  • Former Israeli intelligence official has linked the WIV to China’s biological weapons programme.
  • It is difficult to distinguish between a naturally occurring event and accidental release of a genetically modified pathogen. Hence, it is the responsibility of the institution and country where the first outbreak occurred to establish the facts.
  • China on the other hand has done contrary to this and has covered up facts and impeded investigations.
    • One of the doctors from China, who tried to alert others on a social media platform from his hospital bed in Wuhan, later died because of Covid, was vilified and  was charged with making false claims, spreading rumours, and disturbing the social order.

• Countries demanding greater transparency and accountability have been either denounced or ‘punished’ by China.

• • China’s vehement opposition to further investigations, actions to suppress facts from getting out, and reluctance to share data only fuel the suspicion that China has something to hide.

 WAYFORWARD

• In the light of the above fact, an analysis of the origin of the Covid epidemic is the need of the hour.
• There is a need to strengthen the structures to prevent development of Biological weapons.
• Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BWC) of 1972, formerly known as the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on their Destruction — has no systems to verify compliance with its prohibitions, nor any enforcement mechanisms to penalise infringement of its provisions. 
• Hence, steps should be taken to ensure that compromises on biosecurity and willful breaches of the Convention can be tackled in a better way.
• In the absence of a robust system of accountability by the countries, there are chances of other viruses like smallpox being used as potent biological weapons.
• In the present, there have been persistent fears that these have been disseminated, and certain countries are experimenting with genetically modifying them. Hence, steps should be applied to check expansion of Biological weapons.

Reference:

1. https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/the-red-flags-on-the-trail-of-the-virus/article34746586.ece