Source:
https://scmp.com/coronavirus/greater-china/article/3080597/coronavirus-where-was-china-while-one-world-was-raising Greater China
Coronavirus: Where was China while ‘One World’ was raising US$200 million to fight Covid-19?
- More than 70 singers and celebrities took part in the global charity event but there was a distinct shortage of Chinese stars
- ‘If the world has no access to your music, how can the world make sense of your values?’ social media user says
Lady Gaga was one of the headliners and organisers of the One World event. Photo: Handout
Chinese performers were notable by their absence from the “One World: Together at Home” cross-platform event broadcast on Sunday to raise money to help fight Covid-19.
Organised by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the charity Global Citizen in collaboration with Lady Gaga, the eight-hour show featured more than 70 singers and celebrities, including Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish, the Rolling Stones, Jennifer Lopez, John Legend, Elton John, Ellen DeGeneres, Taylor Swift and Korean pop group SuperM.
Even former US first ladies Michelle Obama and Laura Bush turned up.
There were no performers from mainland China, but Hongkongers Eason Chan and Jackie Cheung did take part, while renowned pianist Lang Lang, who was born in mainland China but now lives in Hong Kong, accompanied Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli.
It is possible China’s lack of involvement was related to its uneasy relationship with some of the celebrities taking part.
In 2016, Beijing banned Lady Gaga from Chinese television screens after she met the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader in exile, while former Beatle Paul McCartney, who joined the online performance, recently raised eyebrows by calling for the closure of China’s “medieval” wet markets in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
Hong Kong’s Jackie Cheung performs during the One World concert. Photo: Handout
The show was not available on Chinese television or online, but some video clips were shared on social media, where people had plenty of opinions about China’s absence from the event.
“China didn’t broadcast Live Aid [in 1985], and still refuses to do so even though 35 years have passed … China has never joined the One World,” a person said on Weibo, China’s Twitter-like platform.
“Our country not only banned the live broadcast, but also refused to recommend its own singers to participate in the global event,” said another.
“If the world has no access to your music, how can the world make sense of your values? Please don’t blame those theories that are allegedly tarnishing China, your own propaganda agenda has huge problems!”
Hong Kong’s Eason Chan performs during the One World concert. Photo: Handout
Before the show started, Lady Gaga posted a personal tribute on Instagram to everyone helping to fight Covid-19 around the world.
“I’m so grateful to all the health care workers and the medical workers and all the grocery store workers and delivery people and the postal workers, all the other non-profits that are working so hard … I just want you to know that this is really a true love letter to all of you,” she said.
Lady Gaga described WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus as a “superstar”. Photo: AFP
She also praised the embattled head of the WHO Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, describing him as a “superstar”.
“Thank you so much to the media for telling the stories of all of these medical professionals and getting the word out about how under-resourced their systems are,” she said.
Last week, US President Donald Trump announced a freeze on financial support for the WHO after accusing the UN health agency of mismanaging the global health crisis and helping to spread the Chinese government’s “disinformation” in the early days of the pandemic.
The One World event raised US$127.9 million for the WHO’s Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund and US$72.8 million for local and regional responders, Global Citizen said on Sunday.