Behind the coronavirus mask - China's tightening of state control
In early January, 2020, the Chinese State television service first reported an ongoing outbreak of ‘Wuhan Virus’ — a type of coronavirus — originating from Wuhan Province with initial cases being detected as early as December 12, 2019. Since then, over 75,000 infections with over 2,400 deaths — a death toll surpassing that of the SARS outbreak in 2003 — have been confirmed within Chinese borders. While the health crisis has afforded China a unique, if not unfortunate, opportunity to demonstrate its impressive logistical capabilities, a series of heavy handed responses and policies have again drawn to light the apparent lack of concern for civil liberties and human rights frequently displayed by President Xi Jingpeng’s regime.
Infectious disease expert Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University has described the CCP’s effort to contain the spread of coronavirus as “stunning”, in terms of the speed at which such massive infrastructural moves have been made despite colossal logistical challenges. By late January, Wuhan and 15 additional cities had been placed under quarantine with immense travel restrictions. More recent reports indicate anywhere from 150 to 760 million people are under some degree of quarantine or travel restriction. Owing to overwhelmed medical facilities in Wuhan Province, the state planned and constructed an impressive 1,000 bed field hospital in under two weeks, which began taking in patients as of early February. The technological display too has been striking. In an attempt to track the virus, China Railway Corporation has been using big data to ascertain the person to person spread by determining who shared compartments with infected passengers. Simultaneously, a drone fleet, equipped with cameras and speakers, is being used to ensure citizens outside are using required face masks.
While these measures may well be contributing to the apparent slowing of the virus’ spread, the state has come under fire for what many consider to be inhumane, poorly planned, and over-the-top methods. In a phone call with US President Donald J. Trump, President Xi highlighted the nation-wide mobilization of citizens in a “people’s war against the epidemic”. To facilitate this, the government’s “grid management” system has paired with local neighbourhood committees to create and enforce preventative regulations in every locale. In this manner, Beijing has directly inserted itself into local affairs. Apartment buildings, for example, have been issuing papers to regulate the comings and goings of their tenants, and in some cases have even refused entry to those who’ve travelled out of town recently. Professor Li Jing of Zheijang University in Hangzhou experienced a fright when she was nearly barred from taking her husband to hospital following a choking incident because her neighbourhood only allowed one traveller per family every other day. Professor Li attributes the unreasonable rules to the pressure the central government has put on local officials, which she says has made local governments “radical”.
Confirming Li’s sentiments, recent footage has surfaced of citizens accused of public outings without face masks being forced by police or their compatriots through the streets with apologetic signs or in otherwise demeaning manners. Local authorities in Huangzhou have even barred pharmacies from selling cold and cough medicine in an attempt to force people with symptoms to hospital for care. Seeking medical attention can come at a cost however, as even those deemed healthy and virus-free may return home to a mandatory two week quarantine and are required to notify a local Communist Party secretary and other volunteers of their condition and location twice a day. Those who stay at home may escape frequent incidents of harassment in public, yet they face shortages of food and medicines owing to insufficient stores or delivery disruptions.
Stuck between oppressive containment policies and dwindling access to daily necessities, Chinese citizens who turn to the internet for information or to air their grievances face censorship or worse. Dr. Li Wenliang, one of the first to detect and warn online of the virus’ danger, was threatened by police and forced to sign a statement promising no “further trouble”. Li has since passed at the age of 34 as a result of his efforts in treating virus patients. As doctors forego meals for fear of being unable to replace their protective equipment once removed and nurses work until their breaking points so as not to appear disloyal, those who report on horrible hospital conditions face government backlash. Chen Qiushi, a citizen journalist, revealed neglected corpses stacking up on Wuhan hospital corridors and has since disappeared. Official statements may be met with a raised brow as doctors speak out against what they believe to be government misinformation, such as calling into question the efficacy of Shuanghuanglian— a drug being pushed by the state media said to help with coronavirus symptoms.
People across the world may well be gearing up to face a serious global pandemic, but Chinese citizens already face a far more harrowing reality. Threat of disease notwithstanding, fears of harassment and arrest for venturing outside — a challenge in its own right given extensive local restrictions — force people indoors, where they struggle with food and medicine rations. Online censorship and dubious government information create an environment of anxiety with no safe outlet. Restricted and tracked in where they travel and what they say, the people of China live under Orwellian conditions with no end in sight.
