Despite continuing concerns over the origins and transmission of SARS, China in August announced the lifting of a ban on the trade and sale of 54 species of wildlife. This includes the civet cat which is known to be a carrier of the disease.
More than 800 people worldwide have died from SARS since it first emerged in China in late 2002.
So far researchers have not yet been able to say whether SARS jumped from non-human animals to humans, but transmission from civets or other animals to human beings somewhere in southern China is a leading hypothesis for the disease’s emergence at the moment.
The World Health Organization, which is trying to pinpoint the source of the disease, opposed China’s move. Dr. Hank Bekedam, WHO representative to CHINA, said, “We think it’s a little early to lift the restrictions.”
Source:
News shorts. MeatNews.Com, August 19, 2003.
SARS: China to lift wildlife ban. Associated Press, August 14, 2003.