Censors removed a slew of public comments on Chinese social media after a fatal bus accident sparked a wave of messages, many of which criticized strict COVID-19 prevention measures.
The bus carrying close Covid-19 contacts from their homes in Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou province, to a quarantine facility 260km away when it crashed shortly after 2am on Sunday (September 18), killing 27 people.
Within 24 hours of the accident, more than 69,000 comments gave the impression on Chinese social media and topics similar to the microblogging site Weibo were viewed more than 400 million times.
An apology and the suspension of three officials completing an investigation did little to calm the discussion, with several messages calling for an end to the transportation of citizens many miles away.
This week, microblogging platform Weibo said more than 652 public posts were removed because they “violated the site’s policies” and 108 accounts were suspended.
According to Weibo, the posts mocked the accident or negatively affected the victims and their families.
Posts on social media platforms, such as WeChat, were also removed, and one that broke the news of the crash in front of state media was added.
“What’s the use of apologizing?” one commenter wrote on Weibo. All you do is apologize, but when [he asks] questions, his posts are deleted. “
An account she deleted Tuesday had shared the story of an 18-year-old woman, who said her teachers had informed her cousin that her parents had died in the crash.
“I asked him if he was okay and he seemed calm, but I think he’s just looking to be tough. “
[[nest: 597187]]
The fate turn highlighted China’s strict zero-covid policy and its implementation through local authorities.
Some social media commentators questioned why the bus ordered to leave Guiyang after midnight, in violation of national security regulations.
“Couldn’t they have waited until morning?says a comment online.
Guiyang continues to enforce zero-Covid measures in parts of the city, despite the government’s announcement on Monday that the network transmission threat had been “effectively controlled”.
On Wednesday, the government introduced a new mass testing circular in some districts, adding Yunyan, home to bus crash victims.
In other parts of the city that have been declared low-risk, citizens have been allowed to return to work, shop and go out to Guiyang.
However, all public parks, museums, gyms and cinemas closed and eating in restaurants is still prohibited.
Also on Wednesday, Guizhou province reported 57 confirmed cases, adding 16 in Guiyang, and 131 asymptomatic cases, adding 62 in the provincial capital.
This article was first published in the South China Morning Post.