New Delhi: China has imposed restrictions on the publication of academic research about how the novel coronavirus originated. A central government directive and online notices published by two Chinese universities, which have now been removed, have disclosed it, said a report by the CNN.
These restrictions are being viewed as an effort by the Chinese government to control the narrative on the origin of the global pandemic, because the viral disease was first reported from Wuhan in the country’s Hubei province.
The restrictions rule that all academic papers on coronavirus will be subjected to an additional vetting before being submitted for publication. According to the online notices, which have now been deleted, any research material on the origin of the novel coronavirus will be scrutinised and must be approved by central government officials.
A medical expert in Hong Kong, who had published a critical analysis of coronavirus cases in an international medical journal, said his work didn’t undergo any such scrutiny in February.
Another Chinese researcher, who didn’t wish to be named, was quoted by the CNN as saying: “I think it is a coordinated effort from (the) Chinese government to control (the) narrative, and paint it as if the outbreak did not originate in China.”
He added, “…I don’t think they will really tolerate any objective study to investigate the origin of this disease.”
Also read: China’s blunders in Wuhan should settle the debate about democracy and economic progress
Strict regulations
The directive issued by the Ministry of Education’s Science and Technology Department in China states that “academic papers about tracing the origin of the virus must be strictly and tightly managed”.
It also maintains that all such papers have to be approved by academic committees of universities before being sent to the education ministry’s science and technology department.
After this, the paper will be sent to a task force under the state council for further scrutiny. The papers can only be submitted to journals after a university gets approval from this task force.
Some papers on Covid-19 are to be vetted by academic committees based on their “academic value” or on whether the “timing for publishing” is right.
One of the documents on these restrictions was posted at the Fudan University’s website Friday. A person associated with the university told CNN that the document was not supposed to be made public and taken down a few hours later.
What Chinese govt says about the outbreak
A number of findings on early coronavirus cases by some Chinese researches have now raised questions over the official account of the outbreak.
Chinese officials had earlier asserted that there cannot be a unanimous conclusion drawn on the exact origin of the novel coronavirus.
Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson of the Chinese foreign ministry, had in March said on Twitter the virus originated in the US and was transmitted to China by the American military.
2/2 CDC was caught on the spot. When did patient zero begin in US? How many people are infected? What are the names of the hospitals? It might be US army who brought the epidemic to Wuhan. Be transparent! Make public your data! US owe us an explanation! pic.twitter.com/vYNZRFPWo3
— Lijian Zhao 赵立坚 (@zlj517) March 12, 2020
Yanzhong Huang, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, has also been quoted by the CNN as saying: “It is no surprise that the government seeks to control related scientific research so that the findings do not challenge its own narrative on the origin of the virus and the government response to the crisis.”
“The danger is that when scientific research is subject to the needs of those in power, it further undermines the credibility of the government narrative, making accusations of underreporting and misinformation more convincing,” Huang added.
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