AFP: China clams up on SARS information

April 9, 2003

(Clearwisdom.net) BEIJING, April 9 (AFP) - Despite China's insistence that SARS has been "effectively controlled", what appears more appropriate is that the government has "effectively controlled" information about the killer disease.

Since authorities first announced two months ago that the outbreak of atypical pneumonia in China was in hand, the death toll nationwide as of Wednesday had increased nearly 11-fold and infections by some 4.2 times.

In a February 9 report, China's first since the disease broke out in southern Guangdong province in November, 305 cases of the mysterious disease were reported as leading to five fatalities.

As of April 8, 1,279 cases have been officially reported with 53 deaths.

China's media offensive to put the country in a better light on the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), has also stretched to Internet news sites and chatrooms.

Doctors and medical officials have also been ordered not to talk.

Despite international outcry over the disease and widespread condemnation of China's slow and intransparent response to the outbreak, the gag order on Wednesday was in full force.

"According to the law, only relevant authorities have the right to publicize this information, so I can't answer any questions," an official at Beijing's Ditan Infectious Disease Hospital told AFP when inquiring about SARS.

"Please call the Beijing Center for Disease Prevention and Control (CDPC)," she said, while refusing to identify herself.

Of eight hospitals contacted by AFP Wednesday none was prepared to talk.

At Beijing's CDPC, the answer was similar.

"We cannot answer any questions from the overseas press until we get permission from the Beijing Health Bureau," an official named Zhang said.

"Call the Beijing Health Bureau, if they notify us we will answer your questions."

At the Beijing Health Bureau, an official said that since AFP was a foreign news agency, it should be directing its questions to the foreign affairs office of the Beijing government.

"These kinds of questions should be answered by the Beijing foreign affairs office," she said, while refusing to identify herself.

At the foreign affairs office of the city government, an official said: "We can't answer your questions on this at the moment."

Meanwhile, the disease continued to spread worldwide with 2,894 cases and 104 fatalities reported as of April 8.

In Hong Kong, which neighbors Guangdong and was first stricken by SARS in late February, the number of cases stood at 928 cases with 25 dead.