Beijing hasn’t always been the capital of China. With such a long history and areas being conovetook by various groups and people, there have been numerous capitals throughout the country. Most of the capitals existed during the warring stated period and it is recognized that there were ” Six Ancient capitals of China “.
But Beijing’s long history as an important city has played a large role in why it is capital today. In fact, tradition and history are probably the best explanations for why Beijing is the capital of China. Beijing has been capital of China from 127 onward, with a couple of exceptions. It was not capital from 1368 to 1420, and from 1928 to 1949. But given this historical importance, it’s no real surprise it remains capital today.
Beijing currently sits 70miles west of the Bohai sea and is bordered by the Hebei Province to the north, weat, south, and a small portion in the east, with Tianjin bordering it to the southeast. It has a variety of different transportation hubs, including roads,railways, and airports.
Beijing has more or less always been in areas, dating back to when it was known as Ji. That city may not have been in the exact location the city is in now, but it was pretty close. After the Mongols ovetookthe area and when then chased after the country, the city of Beijing was built on those foundations.
Today, Beijing is the cultural, education, and political center of china. The history of the country can be seen in the architecture, and some of the country can be seen in the architecture, and some of the roads and buildings date back to the time it was occupied by the Mongols. The great wall of China is in this area,built to protect the people from another Mongol invasion. The forbidden city is located at the heart of Beijing. The history is mixed with the modern, an it’s possible to find skyscrapers and modern amenities in addition to historic structures in the area.
With more than half a million cases being reported globally and at least 24,500 fatalities as for now, COVID-19 is a pandemic that has literally brought our world to almost a complete lockdown.
The Indian prime minister had ordered a 21 days lockdown in a country which is home to more than 3.1billion people in the world and the thought of the deadly virus spreading in a country as populous as China deserves not just the immediate attention of Indian leaders but the Indian community.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has showed no restraint in blaming China for the spread of COVID-19, even though critics have accused him of ‘racism’. Trump has often referred to the novel coronavirus as China virus or Wuhan virus, which is where technically the virus spread from.And that is a sentiment resonated by many.
Earlier this week, class action lawsuits were filed against the people’s Republic of China in US courts.Globally, there is a growing movement including on social media to hold China responsible for its alleged failure in containing the virus, and also for misleading the international community by under- reporting the virus threat. Critics says that had China not undermined the seriousness of the virus and hidden information about its spread, we possibly could have prevented a pandemic from spreading. The question that needs a serious thought is that can China be found guilty for its alleged negligence and possible under reporting of COVID-19, and for allegedly hiding certain information about it’s transmission??
On 15th June 2007, the international Heath regulations, 200t (IHR):came into effect,of which China is a signatory.
The IHR guidelines places obligations on nation States to provide adequate information to the world health organization (WHO) to prevent the spread of pandemics. It is alleged that China failed under it’s obligations in this regard. In fact not only di China downplay the seriousness of corona virus till as late as February 2020 in which the virus began infecting people around December 2019,it seems to have hidden vital information until January 2020 by stating that the virus does not spread human to human contact, a myth that has since been busted by medical practitioners.
Observers argued that it is difficult to believe that China,which boasts of it’s advances in science and technology, did not know the fact that the virus spreads through contact. They question if it could be possible that the reason for not disclosing the true extent of the virus could have been for some other purposes, quite possibly to ensure that it’s trade is not affected due to the fact that China is one of the largest manufacturers and exporters in the world.
International law places an obligation on States to behave in a responsible manner,and this is known as the law of state responsibility. International law scholars around the world haveobserved that the Chinese government from the echelons of power right to the local authorities in Wuhan have failed in their responsibility by both withholding information and by providing inconclusive information, and hence seem to have violated accepted standards and norms of international law.
On an international level. States could sue the people’s republic of China at the international court of Justice (ICJ) and other international forums for violations. From the information presently available as to Chinese response from the time of the novel coronavirus being detected in Wuhan to the actual spread of It globally, it appears that a prima-facia case has been made out for China to be held liable for its alleged inactions in contacting the spread of the virus. States could argue that China gave precedence to economic gains rather than do things on a war footing,which could have possibly helped contain the virus to the shores alone, and not becomeva pandemic that we are witnessing today.
