'Fake, Fake': senior Chinese leader heckled by residents on visit to coronavirus city – The Guardian, Theguardian.com
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Sun Chunlan was visiting Wuhan when residents apparently criticized efforts to combat virus
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() Chinese vice premier Sun Chunlan on a visit to Wuhan on 2 February. Videos appeared to show her being heckled on her return visit on Thursday with residents shouting ‘fake, fake’, ‘it’s all fake’. Photograph: Xinhua / REX / Shutterstock
Vice-premier Sun Chunlan, one of the most senior government officials to visit the center of the coronavirus outbreak, toured a residential community in Wuhan’s Qingshan district on Thursday. According to state media, Sun was inspecting the operations of the neighborhood committee, meant to make checks on residents each day and distribute necessities like medicine, food and fresh vegetables.
Videos posted online showed Sun and a delegation walking along the grounds while residents appeared to shout from their apartment windows, “fake, fake,” “it’s all fake,” as well as “we protest”. Some could be heard yelling, “formalism,” a term that has employed frequently recently to criticize ineffective measures taken by government representatives for the sake of appearances.
Since 18 February, all residential compounds in Wuhan have been put under lockdown , barring most residents from leaving their homes. Neighborhood committees have been charged with handling everything from arranging hospital visits and quarantines of residents, as well as residents ’supplies of food and daily temperature checks.
But many residents have complained to the Guardian and other media that the community workers have not provided needed assistance. Community workers have complained that they have been overwhelmed.
Global Times (@ globaltimesnews)
“It’s fake! It’s fake!” shout residents of a community in (# COVID)epicenter Wuhan in a viral video on China’s social media. They have accused property management of cheating them by only appearing to provide promised necessities. Investigation is underway
Yet, the People’s Daily posted a video subtitled in English showing one person shouting “fake, fake,” which has since been removed. Other outlets like Beijing Youth Daily reported on the incident. A government-affiliated account on WeChat, Taoran Notes, said in (an essay) posted on Thursday that all the facts of the incident were “basically true”.
According to state broadcaster CCTV, Sun held a meeting immediately after the incident to deal with the complaints. Staff have been dispatched to visit the residents one by one, according to Taoran.
Observers say state media may be trying to co-opt discussion of the videos , which circulated widely online, and provide their own narrative of events. The incident also provides the central government an opportunity to show it responding to public sentiment, after a wave of public anger over the suppression of early warnings of the virus.
“It is by not covering up problems that we can resolve them,” the article by Taoran Notes said. “We must face the problems in a realistic manner to gain the understanding and support of the masses.”
Versions of the video were still being posted on social media on Friday. “If they were not pushed to the edge, Chinese people would not shout,” one Weibo user wrote.
Another comment read: “What were they shouting? They were shouting the truth. For years, when these high-level meetings or inspections took place, those who would tell the truth would be sent away or shut up. ” Another said: “Do you hear the people?”
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