China changes virus narrative to save soft power

"It's a change of narrative to say that people shouldn't blame China for the spread of the coronavirus, and China has handled the epidemic much better than other countries. is also an initiative to strengthen the authority of Xi Jinping. "

Until a fortnight ago, it has been widely reported in the Chinese state media that the COVID-19 epidemic had probably started on the wholesale market of Huanan Seafood in Wuhan. This market was closed in early January.

At the time, the China Daily newspaper says in an article called "Quick action stops the spread of the virus" that the market was "suspected of being the source of the virus". Gao Fu, director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said at a press conference on January 20 that authorities believed the virus was probably from wild animals in the seafood market, although the exact source is unclear.

The turning point was on February 27 when Zhong Nanshan, a senior scientist leading the group of government experts overseeing efforts to contain the epidemic, said at a press conference. than the coronavirus first appeared in China but may not have originated in China ". His remark opened the door to a wave of anti-American comments on Chinese social media platforms that suggested COVID-19 was from the United States.

Since then, the powerful Chinese propaganda apparatus has worked overtime to sell the message that the coronavirus is not China's fault, the government has done a great job of containing the epidemic and the rest. of the world should be grateful to be able to benefit from China's "sacrifice".

"Although the epidemic first broke out in China, it does not necessarily mean that the virus originated in China, much less" made in China, "tweeted the Chinese ambassador to Africa. South Lin Songtian Sunday.

It is technically correct. Scientists have not been able to confirm the precise origin of the coronavirus, although the earliest known cases came from people who had visited or worked at the market. The World Health Organization has confirmed this, but states in a February 25 report that "an animal source had not yet been identified". Since then, China has permanently banned the trade in wildlife for food.

The point, however, does not concern the precise origin of the coronavirus but the efforts of the central government to deflect criticism that it is responsible for the fact that the authorities in Wuhan did not report the severity of the crisis health during these crucial weeks of January before millions of people left the city for the Chinese New Year.

China's history of rewriting history means that this fact will probably never be known to future generations – in the same way that many people in the country today ignore the massacre of ; students in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

This also fits China's account that the rest of the world is now trying to contain the epidemic at a time when it seems to be in control. The sufficiency of certain comments on the difficulties encountered by the United States and South Korea to contain the epidemic is worrying.

It is true, however, that the Chinese government has made a full effort to contain the epidemic. It has locked up entire cities and imposed heavy travel restrictions. China only reported 40 new cases on Monday, including 36 in Wuhan.

While these measures are difficult to apply for democracies like Australia, all countries can learn important lessons from China's response to the epidemic.

Deceptive and misleading government statements about coronavirus also work both ways. In the United States, Republican Senator Tom Cotton led the charge of the conspiracy theory by claiming that the coronavirus is a human-caused disease originating from a laboratory in Wuhan.

That the rest of the world gobbles up the story of China's victory over the coronavirus is less important than what its 1.4 billion citizens believe. Social media reaction to comments by Wang Zhonglin, the Communist Party's top official in Wuhan, last week highlighted the pent-up anger among the tens of millions of people who were locked up in their homes for six weeks.

Wang suggested launching a "gratitude education" for the people of Wuhan so that they can express their thanks to Xi Jinping.

It did not go well and his comments, originally reported in local media, were later deleted.

"Anyone who feels sorry for Wuhan will not say it. The city was taken without preparation and they could not handle the explosive growth of the virus. The last thing we need is to educate to be grateful," said writes a prominent Chinese journalist on social media. media in a comment that had millions of visits.

Despite a previous backlash, in most of the country there are already signs that Xi will emerge as a hero.