(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-05-16 07:40

Getting united to do everything we can to save more lives is the top priority at this moment, says an article in China Youth Daily. The following is an excerpt:

Several days have passed since the earthquake rocked Sichuan province. Because of the severe damage to roads and the heavy rain, the rescuers still do not have exact information about the casualty or about how many people are still stuck in the debris, nor do people know whether the survivors are getting proper food and medicine.

As the troops are racing against time to get to the disaster-hit areas and save those in need, some are raising various questions about the efficiency of the rescue teams or the forecasts issued by the seismologists.

Some questions are pointless and groundless while some are worth analyzing or really insightful. However, valid or not, the questions are certainly not the most urgent, nor the most helpful, thing for the rescue work at this moment.

Far away from the disaster-hit areas, we have a lot to do to help the people there.

Donation might be the most direct assistance. Tens of thousands have lost their homes after the tremor. Shivering in the cold rain without an adequate supply of water and food, they are in an urgent need of tents, food, medicine, drinking water and communication equipment.

Some businesses with a strong sense of social responsibility and many kind people have donated big sums of money by now. In many cities, residents are pouring into the blood-collection stations to donate blood, which would soon be sent to the affected areas.

Keeping calm is also a necessary support to the rescue work. Besides being sober and refraining from panic, we should also listen to the authoritative information sources, instead of believing rumors or spreading them.

Unless really necessary, we should also make less phone calls into the affected areas so that the telecommunication sources could be saved for the rescue work.

This is a disaster rocking the whole country with tens of thousands of victims. The resources of the whole country should be mobilized.

More importantly, the rescue teams as well as the officials, the doctors, the scientists and others working day and night to save more lives need the people's trust and support from across the country.

Compared with the tasks of getting those under the debris out, all questions and doubts should wait until we have done everything we can to help them.

(China Daily 05/16/2008 page8)