!['Hong Kong's Dr Fauci' sounds alarm on next pandemic](https://www.berlinertageblatt.de/media/shared/articles/fd/21/b3/-Hong-Kong-s-Dr-Fauci--sounds-alarm-357118.jpg)
-
Multiple people shot along highway in US state of Kentucky
-
'Super proud' Sabalenka downs Pegula to win US Open thriller
-
In Papua New Guinea, Pope holds mass 'at the edge of the world'
-
Hewett stays positive for wheelchair tennis despite agonising defeat
-
Three things on US Open champion Aryna Sabalenka
-
Sabalenka downs Pegula to win US Open thriller
-
USA men land Paralympic basketball three-peat, Jiang takes 7th swim gold
-
USA slump to first home defeat against Canada in 67 years
-
Argentina hand Australia record 67-27 loss in Rugby Championship
-
England impress on Carsley bow, Germany, Dutch hit five
-
AFP photographer wins top prize for Gaza coverage
-
No Love for Packers for three weeks after ligament sprain: reports
-
Pedro Almodovar: chronicler of modern Spain crowned in Venice
-
Almodovar wins top Venice prize for end-of-life film
-
Trump sounds dark tone at rally, Harris 'ready' for debate
-
Wirtz and Musiala dazzle to kick-start new Germany era
-
Chinese teenager takes 7th gold of Paris Paralympics
-
England interim boss Carsley 'respects' divided opinions over anthem
-
Neuville moves to the front in the Acropolis Rally
-
Garfield, Pugh charm Toronto in new romance 'We Live in Time'
-
21 boys confirmed dead in Kenya school inferno
-
Over 100,000 protest in France against new prime minister
-
Golden 30 minutes takes China to swimming Paralympics swimming domination
-
Green leads Australia to T20 series sweep of Scotland
-
Nigeria, Cameroon win afer chaotic AFCON build-ups
-
Nicole Kidman: A-lister, cinematic chameleon, wins in Venice
-
'I had to prove myself', says Kolisi after win against All Blacks
-
Almodovar wins top prize at Venice film festival
-
Grealish savours England redemption after 'worst summer'
-
Carsley makes flying start as England interim boss in win over Ireland
-
Springboks close on Rugby Championship with storming win over All Blacks
-
Sri Lanka's De Silva and Kamindu Mendis defy England in third Test
-
Farrell's Racing lose on opening day of Top 14
-
Ireland and UK to 'reset' relations as Starmer visits Dublin
-
Dunbar takes second Vuelta stage as Roglic closes in on victory
-
Fritz eyes US Open glory to end 21 years of American hurt
-
Thousands protest in France against new prime minister
-
Death toll from Kenya school blaze rises to 21
-
Brazil's right rallies for 'freedom' after X suspended
-
Trump to hold rally in swing state, Harris preps for debate
-
Stone at the double as Sri Lanka collapse against England in third Test
-
French tennis player takes legal action over online abuse
-
Italy backs Kyiv's 'legitimate defence' as Zelensky presses allies
-
The Body Shop rescued from administration after deal
-
Martin roars to victory in San Marino sprint, extends MotoGP lead
-
Smoke and screams: The horror of Kenya's school dorm inferno
-
MotoGP leader Martin roars to victory in San Marino sprint
-
Ireland and UK to 'reset' relations as Starmer begins Dublin visit
-
Ma Lin turns brutal encounter with bear into glorious Paralympic career
-
Flintoff appointed England Lions head coach
!['Hong Kong's Dr Fauci' sounds alarm on next pandemic](https://www.berlinertageblatt.de/media/shared/articles/fd/21/b3/-Hong-Kong-s-Dr-Fauci--sounds-alarm-357118.jpg)
'Hong Kong's Dr Fauci' sounds alarm on next pandemic
Hong Kong microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung has done battle with some of the world's worst threats, including the SARS virus he helped isolate and identify. And he has a warning.
Another pandemic is inevitable and could exact damage far worse than Covid-19, according to the soft-spoken scientist sometimes thought of as Hong Kong's answer to top US health expert Anthony Fauci.
"Both the public and (world) leaders must admit that another pandemic will come, and probably sooner than you anticipate," he told AFP at the city's Queen Mary Hospital, where he works and teaches.
"Why I make such a horrifying prediction is because you can see clearly that the geopolitical, economic, and climatic changes are changing so rapidly," he told AFP.
Politicians must "come to their senses" and solve "global existential threats," he warns in his new autobiography "My Life in Medicine: A Hong Kong Journey".
While world leaders are more focused on "national or regional interests", Yuen said a rapidly changing climate coupled with emerging infectious diseases should be a top priority.
"This is something so important that we should not ignore."
- Humble background -
Yuen is a globally recognised authority on coronaviruses and infectious diseases, but he came from humble beginnings.
Born in Hong Kong in the late 1950s, he grew up in a 60-square-foot subdivided flat with his parents and three brothers.
Since graduating from medical school in 1981, he has worked in the city's public hospitals, where doctors are paid far less than in the private sector.
It was in 2003 when he leapt into the public consciousness, after he and his team successfully isolated and identified severe acute respiratory syndrome, better known as SARS.
It was a vital step towards testing, diagnosing and treating the disease, which emerged in southern China and Hong Kong before spreading globally.
The virus killed nearly 300 people in the city in just two months, a toll second only to mainland China.
That experience informed Yuen's approach to the Covid-19 pandemic, which ripped through Hong Kong due to lax vaccination, particularly among the elderly.
"We benefited from the 20 years of study that followed the SARS outbreak," he wrote in his book.
"Until factors beyond our ability to stop or overcome -- fear, ignorance, poor messaging, and deliberate misinformation -- the measures were effective" in buying Hong Kong time until the vaccines were developed.
In the end, despite tough lockdown measures and lengthy quarantines, Hong Kong recorded some three million infections -- about half its population -- and more than 13,800 deaths from Covid-19.
It was a frenetic time for Yuen, who became a familiar face as the government's go-to expert and penned more than 100 peer-reviewed studies on the virus.
It also put him in a delicate position on several occasions, including when his call to lift restrictions in 2022 was rejected when the city stayed aligned with China's zero-Covid doctrine of closed borders and quarantines.
The self-described medical "detective" also faced complaints that put his license at risk after he described the seafood market in China's Wuhan -- where the first cluster of coronavirus cases was detected -- as a "crime scene".
- 'Transparent investigation' -
Today, Yuen chooses his words carefully and avoids political subjects, but he maintains that understanding the origins of Covid-19 is key.
It is "important to properly do an investigation in a very open, transparent manner" so lessons can be learned for future pandemic prevention, he said.
The World Health Organization has called on China to be more transparent about the pandemic's origins, without making any firm conclusions on the source.
Last year, Yuen set up the Pandemic Research Alliance with peers in mainland China and the United States to share information and research on future threats.
"It is a bad idea to stop or inhibit these exchanges because it protects everyone," he said.
"If we do not talk about it... then another pandemic comes, we have to pay a huge price again."
M.Ouellet--BTB