Chinese Goverment Stiffles Social Medias Over Coronavirus Outbreak

Social networking sites like Twitter and WeChat are crucially kept in check as the Chinese government began using them as surveillance tools to keep track of citizens amid the coronavirus outbreak. According to a report from Vice, those sharing any negative information about the epidemic and their sayings will soon be kept behind closed doors, citing that the government is likely to regulate this problem in both indirect and direct responses.

Since the number of coronavirus death tolls skyrocketed in China, this topic has become a matter of dispute across not only the country but also the globe. Take this case as a telling example: Li Wenliang worked as a doctor in the city of Wuhan, and he was some of the very first whistle-blowers that call the government for help over the potential risk of coronavirus. His death drew angriness from online protests as Weibo saw 2 million posts related to the hashtag “I want the freedom of speech” on its platform; however, they all were deleted by the following day without any further explanation.

The Chinese government actually learned something from this so-called accident. Rather than just waiting for a mass movement and taking it down, authorities are ready to crack down any inappropriate content from any individual. A Chinese man disclosed that the Chinese government was trying to discover his location after he visited the U.S and share coronavirus information with his relatives via WeChat.

Another man, unluckily, was having to face Chinese polices when they dropped by his home to ask about his critical tweet regarding how the Chinese government failed to handle the pandemic. As per Vice, Great-Firewall-breaking tools like VPNs will also not be able to support Chinese users amid the medical crisis.

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