Sinophobia Creating Vaccine Hesitancy in Vietnam
Sinophobia Creating Vaccine Hesitancy in Vietnam
Vietnam had the COVID-19 virus under control until the more contagious Delta variant struck in early 2021. So as vaccines became available, the Vietnamese public clamored for them. Well, the Western ones. With delays in the production of the homegrown Nanovax, the government has been importing Chinese vaccinations to stem the tide of infections and deaths. The Sinophobia that exists in Vietnam, however, has led to intense vaccine skepticism. Nguyen, a resident of Hanoi, has stated what many others feel: “I would rather die of the Chinese virus than of the Chinese vaccine” (The Diplomat). The anti-Chinese sentiment is centuries old, due to a long period of Chinese occupation, periodic invasions, and more recently, fights over the South China Sea and unethical business practices. Many are still influenced by the Vietnamese Communist Party credo that states that China is the enemy of Vietnam. Others are still scarred from border wars during the 1970s. Some Vietnamese, according to a citizen interviewed by The Diplomat, have even pretended “to have long-term diseases in order to avoid getting Chinese jabs.”
Yet for some, the desire to be protected against COVID outweighs their concern about China. Ho Chi Minh City is now the center of the virus in Vietnam, and many are worried about their safety. Still others are hoping to avoid the strict lockdown in the capital and hope that taking China’s Verocell vaccine will prevent further viral spread. And local governments have not been standing idly by while their constituents refuse to be inoculated. Some are threatening communities with prosecution via WhatsApp to increase rates, while others are investing in pro Sino-Vietnamese advertising.
On the flipside of the intense skepticism for Chinese vaccines is Pfizer, the American vaccine that serves as the COVID holy grail. Other Western viruses have suffered recalls in Asian countries, leaving Pfizer as the most desirable in Vietnam. The Pfizer vaccine, however, is in higher demand than supply, and many have used their “maternal grandfather’s” connections to obtain it. This barely veiled allusion to powerful political connections has provoked outrage among many less-connected citizens, the most publicized scandal occurring when a former beauty pageant winner revealed that her connections had landed her the vaccine soon after lockdown. As of today, the hope for an influx of Pfizer vaccines keeps many away from what they consider the more suspect Chinese vaccines.