Sunshine, beautiful beaches and coconut trees are the picture
most people have for the tropical seaport of Sanya, China's
southernmost city in Hainan Province.
For a number of Russian children who arrived early on Tuesday
for convalescent treatment, the beautiful scenery may be helpful
for them to forget the hostage crisis they were involved with in
Russia's southern city of Beslan nearly two years ago.
These children, aged between 9 and 16, are receiving special
treatment with traditional Chinese medicine plus some recreational
activities, as well, thanks to a Memorandum of Understanding signed
by the Chinese and Russian health authorities early last
November.
Dziova Zarina, 14, who suffered slight paralysis in her right
elbow joint after bullet debris shot through her right arm during
the hostage crisis, now feels a little better after medical
examinations and treatment by Chinese doctors.
"I was always frightened and woke up at night before arriving
here," said Zarina, who admits that she is now familiar to living
here and enjoying eating coconuts.
In addition to physical injuries, children like Zarina have
suffered psychological problems after the crisis, including
constricted chests, palpitations, headaches, insomnia and
nightmares.
Zarina and nine other fellow children now receive free medical
treatments combining Western and Chinese therapies every morning.
This is followed up with some recreational activities in the
afternoon and at night during their 30-day stay in Sanya.
"After medical examinations, we found that most of the children
still suffered serious mental trauma and they are even afraid of
talking to strangers," said Liu Dexi, president of the Traditional
Chinese Medicine Hospital of Sanya.
A group of armed militants took more than 1,000 students,
teachers and parents hostage in a school on the first day of the
new semester. The crisis killed 335 people, including 186 children,
and injured more than 600.
A total of 10 medical experts from the People's Hospital of
Hainan and Liu's hospital are studying the best recuperative and
treatment plans for these 10 children together with their Russian
counterparts.
A group of doctors including Liu were dispatched to Russia's
Beslan by China's Ministry of Health last month to help diagnose
and treat the injured children. With a recommendation from the
Russian side, the Chinese health authority chose 10 children for
free treatment for one month in China.
"Children are urgently in need for psychological treatment
instead of physical injuries as the hostage crisis have brought
them more mental suffering than physical pain," Liu said in an
interview with China Daily.
"As a result, traditional therapies, such as massage,
acupuncture and ointments might play a major role for sooner
recovering," said Liu.
Traditional Chinese medicine, with a continuous history of more
than 5,000 years, is characterized by its concept of holism on
unification of the human and nature world.
"It has a particular effect for mental problems," Liu said. "So
they were told by Russian doctors to receive traditional Chinese
medicine in terms of psychological problems."
The children's treatment in China serves as a good example of
combining traditional Chinese therapies and Western medicine, said
Liu, who added that his hospital has offered treatments for some
top officials from Russia before.
According to Liu, most of the children have recovered from
physical injuries after treatment with Western medicine in Russia
for the past one-and-a-half years.
These children will also participate in some recreational
activities in addition to traditional Chinese therapies. They
include Chinese language studying and Chinese kung fu
(martial arts).
"These recreational activities will be helpful for their
treatment and strengthen their understanding of Chinese culture,"
said Liu. Moreover, each of these children will return to Russia
with a special Chinese traditional costume called "Tang Zhuang,"
according to Liu.
After the first group of 10 children, more children are expected
to come to China for convalescent treatment, Liu said.
"It depends on how these 10 children's treatment goes within one
month, and we are consulting with the Ministry of Health to discuss
the possible treatment for more children in China," Liu said.
According to Liu, the Chinese Government will cover all the
costs of the treatment, which totals 1.6 million yuan
(US$200,000).
Chinese and Russian health authorities jointly signed a
Memorandum of Understanding in Beijing early last year during
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov's visit to China.
China was one of the first countries to ship medical equipment,
valued at 10 million yuan (US$1.23 million) after the Beslan crisis
took place, to show the country's determination to fight against
terrorist attacks. The Chinese Red Cross Society also offered a
donation worth US$100,000 to Russia.
The Chinese Government attaches great importance to the
children's treatment, Yin Li, an official with the International
Affairs Department of the Ministry of Health, said when he arrived
in Sanya with the 10 Russian children on Tuesday.
Yin said this was particularly so because China and Russia had
launched the Year of Russia in China this year. "The treatment
embodies the traditional friendship and mutual trust between China
and Russia as well as the cooperative relationship between these
two countries," Yin said.
"They are expected to recover soon and they will return to
school after the one-month treatment," Davydov Dennis, who works
currently as a translator for the 10 children, told China
Daily.
(China Daily May 6, 2006)