LEAGUE OF NATIONS.
C.H.1266.
Geneva, October 14th, 1937.
HEALTH ORGANISATION.
Special Committee of the Health Committee for
Technical Collaboration with China.
Statement by Dr. Victor Hoo, Representative of
the Chinese Government.
59
The Chinese Delegation duly communicated to the Chinese Government the Assembly and Council decisions con- cerning the request made by the Chinese Government for assistance in the prevention and control of epidemics and the relief of the civilian population, including refugees. My Government, after considering these decisions, asks me to communicate to this special committee a few facts on the present situation and to indicate in what way we believe that this assistance could be provided so as to strengthen the measures already taken by the Chinese central government and provincial authorities. It is unnecessary to remind you, as was stated in the Chinese memorandum of last month regarding technical collaboration between China and the League of Nations, that all responsibility in the work contemplated will rest with the Chinese Government. The League of Nations' assistance will consist simply in strengthening the existing Chinese public health and medical relief organisa- tion in order to enable it to cope with the present situation.
That situation is briefly as follows:
Owing to the hostilities now taking place in China, there is a considerable movement of refugees coming from the North to the South West, from the South to the North-West, and along the Yangtsze River. These refugees number some hundreds of thousands, the population of Nanking and other large cities having already been depleted by 50%. The great port of Shanghai, with a population of over 3 million, has had to be almost entirely evacuated owing to the bombing and shelling which has been continuing now for two months. Refugees have been concentrated in camps established at Soochow, Wusih, Chenkiang and Wuhu, thus increasing the popu- lation of these towns by hundreds of thousands. Cholera has broken out in these camps, and has also spread along the Yangtsze Valley, although fortunately with a very low mortality rate; on the other hand, the cholera in Canton and Hong Kong had a high rate. Control stations have been established along the Yangtsze Valley to detect the arrival of serious cases. At Kiukiang, Anking and Hankow refugees are kept three days in the camps before being allowed to proceed to the interior. In places where the movement of refugees is under control, cholera vaccination is carried out on a large scale, and for the present the supply of vaccine is sufficient.