Yemeni Alumnus Ebrahim: Raising 300,000 Masks for China

Ebrahim As-Shareef, a Ph.D. graduate of CCNU, is from Yemen. He studied and lived in China for more than ten years, and developed a deep affection for China especially for Wuhan. During the COVID-19 outbreak, he and his friends raised 300,000 masks for Wuhan. His story exemplifies caring and friendship across the globe.

Overcoming difficulties

In late January, Shareef learned about the serious situation in Wuhan through the Internet. Although he was in Vietnam, he still hoped to make contributions to the city where he had studied and lived. The virus spread quickly and supplies were rapidly depleting. In this case, Shareef, together with other oversea alumni, decided to donate masks for hospitals in Wuhan and Zhejiang. But that was not easy. Shareef said: “I tried to get in touch with my friends as much as possible,  it was never easy a task to buy face masks, it had become a rare commodity everywhere.” Finally, with jointed efforts and patience, they collected 300,000 masks in Jordan.

However, there was still another problem. The masks couldn’t be transported directly from Jordan to China. Those masks traveled from Jordan to Dubai, then to Thailand, Hong Kong, Beijing, and finally arrived in Wuhan. The next day after their masks were collected, Jordan and Hong Kong banned the export of masks. Shareef had to turn to his friends for help. “We had no time to think too much. We just wanted the masks to arrive in Wuhan as soon as possible”, he said. The supplies successfully arrived in Wuhan in two weeks with the support from people from various  sectors.

Precious time spent in CCNU

When asked why he decided to do so, he said, “Wuhan is my second home. I have lots of friends in Wuhan and we are family.” He regards the experience of studying in CCNU as one of the most beautiful memories in his life. He was grateful for all those teachers and classmates who helped him.

Stand with China

According to Shareef, there were about 170 Yemeni compatriots in Wuhan  when the outbreak occurred and about 100 of them chose to stay during the lockdown. “Wherever we are, whether we are Chinese or not, we all ought to stay together to overcome adversities. That’s the responsibility of global citizens”, he said.

Shareef believed that the epidemic also gave us an opportunity to look at our family relationships and interpersonal relationships. “People from all over the world will be more united in this battle and China and Wuhan will be better”, said shareef.

He also called for united efforts of overseas students, “We lived in China for years, we love China and we should stand with China.”

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