Wuhan, China.
Family members of the coronavirus deaths in Wuhan said on Wednesday that Chinese authorities have removed your group on social media and pressured them to shut up while a World Health Organization team is in town to investigate the origins of the pandemic.
Dozens of family members have connected to the Internet to ask responsibilities to the Wuhan authorities, which they blame for the mismanagement of the outbreak that hit the city a year ago.
Their efforts have so far been thwarted by official obstruction, social media surveillance of groups and intimidation, family members are suing.
But pressure has increased in recent days, ostensibly to quell any criticism during the delicate investigation by the World Health Organization (WHO).
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A group on the social network WeChat, used by 80 to 100 family members over the past year, was suddenly removed without explanation about 10 days ago, said Zhang Hai, a member of the group and very critical of the management of the outbreak.
“This shows that [las autoridades chinas] they are very nervous. They fear these families will come into contact with WHO experts, ”said Zhang, 51, whose father died early in the pandemic on suspicion of covid-19.
“When WHO came to Wuhan [las autoridades] they beat violently [el grupo]. As a result, we have lost contact with many members, ”Zhang added.
Other family members confirmed the group’s elimination. WeChat is operated by the Chinese digital giant Tencent. In China, the most popular platforms routinely remove content that the government considers offensive.
“Same old song”
Family members accuse the Wuhan and Hubei provincial governments of COVID-19 getting out of hand, first to try to hide the outbreak when it first surfaced in the city in December 2019, and then for failing to warn the public.
According to official Chinese figures, COVID-19 killed nearly 3,900 people in Wuhan, the vast majority of the 4,636 deaths recorded in China.
Lots of relatives they distrust these figures due to the lack of testing in the first days of the outbreak. To date, Covid-19 has killed more than two million people worldwide.
While China is largely in control of the pandemic in its territory, it has also thwarted independent attempts to trace its origins. He further suggested, without evidence, that it originated elsewhere.
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A team of WHO experts was finally able to enter Wuhan two weeks ago. His closely guarded investigation into the origin of the virus will start under strict security measures on Thursday.
Another family member, a retired woman who claims her daughter died of the virus in January, told AFP authorities summoned her last week and warned her “not to speak to the media or be used by others.”
On Tuesday, authorities knocked on him with “the same old song,” he explains. ‘They gave me 5,000 yuan [775 dólares] as’ payment for condolences’, ‘he adds, without trying to identify himself.
The Communist Party government is hiding any issue that gives a bad picture of its government and the early days of the virus remain a very sensitive one. Several Wuhan family members tried to file lawsuits seeking damages and sentencing officials, but say the courts have refused to accept them.
The Wuhan government has not responded to AFP’s questions about the families and their demands. Zhang asked WHO experts to “bravely” meet the family members, although he acknowledges such a meeting is highly unlikely.