Chinese SARS patients hidden

Washington Post via Seattle Times ^ | April 20, 2003 | John Pomfret

[sarcasm]

BEIJING — Chinese authorities ordered doctors in Beijing to hide patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, from World Health Organization (WHO) experts last week in an attempt to downplay the epidemic, Chinese doctors and other sources said yesterday.

Authorities transferred about 40 SARS patients to a hotel on the grounds of one hospital and at another facility bundled more than 30 SARS patients into ambulances to prevent the WHO team from finding them, the sources said.

A worker at the Zihuachun Hotel, on the grounds of Hospital No. 309, said several dozen patients were taken to the hotel Tuesday morning, the day WHO officials visited two military hospitals. The patients were moved back to the hospital that evening, he said.

[Mitchell]

Ping.

[ET(end tyranny)]

I think there is 'more' hidden. Check out this chart from An MSNBC article (Towards the end of the article.) Notice anything odd about the numbers???

Full Chart Below

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[ET(end tyranny)]

To go along with the charts. What the red numbers mean etc.

* Includes number of deaths, recoveries and current cases
1. WHO accuses China of underreporting cases in Beijing
2. Includes suspected or probable cases
3. U.S.A. is only reporting suspected cases under investigation.
Numbers in red indicate an increase in the last 24 hours.
Numbers are not updated on Saturday or Sunday
Source: Reuters

[Ma Li]

In the rural Chinese area where we work, the people are being told there is no problem and everything is under control. We are told there are no cases in this city, or any other place in this province, save one case in the provincial capital.

But, two people have told us their grandparents have SARS, and the schools and other organizations have recently given papers to all their students telling them in detail how to wash their hands. (Mainland Chinese people often believe that simply rinsing the hands with water will clean them ((even if the water used is too dirty to drink)) and most don't know about/don't believe in the concept of germs.)

All their lives they've been thinking water was fine and got you clean. Now they are learning for the first time that soap is really and truly essential, and being told it is "to avoid all kinds of diseases." But, they still believe that there is no danger, no problem and no cases here.

A government who can pull the wool that easily over the eyes of millions of their own citizens, living right in the middle of something, often thinks it must be just as easy to pull the wool over the eyes of the world. They never account for, and can't quite understand, culturally, the concept of an independent, reasoning thinker.

[gcruse]

Wow. Welcome to Free Republic. I look forward to reading your posts.

[CathyRyan]

PING TO POST #5

[Dog Gone]

I would have guessed that Free Republic was one of the internet sites blocked by the government. Are you posting directly from China?

[per loin]

Where in China are you?

[riri]

Wow. Welcome to Free Republic. I look forward to reading your posts

I second that.

[Ma Li]

Yes, I can read Free Republic directly. They only block sites that Chinese people would read and understand, and there isn't much chance they would find or be able to get the gist of Free Republic. I use FR for news! I can't get much here, as you can imagine, and if I go through links people post, I can get on sites otherwise blocked.

Mostly they block CNN, (who cares about that?), BBC if they don't like what's being said, anything from Taiwan or Singapore and lots of the Japanese news sites. New York Times, Washington Post, etc are blocked periodically. I've been here nearly 5 years, and they tighten and loosen in cycles.

[Ma Li]

I'd rather not say the exact location, but it is along the Yangtze river, in a small town.

[Dec31,1999]

Thanks for the post, Ma Li. You are part of the solution, no doubt.

[maui_hawaii]

A government who can pull the wool that easily over the eyes of millions of their own citizens, living right in the middle of something, often thinks it must be just as easy to pull the wool over the eyes of the world. They never account for, and can't quite understand, culturally, the concept of an independent, reasoning thinker.

Welcome, and BIG bump for the comments.

[InShanghai]

...the people are being told there is no problem and everything is under control. We are told there are no cases in this city, or any other place in this province, save one case in the provincial capital.

I could certainly understand where you're coming from. The only news I hear in Shanghai is what is on the state run TV news. No one really seems concerned.

BTW, you have mail.

[First Amendment]

Notice anything odd about the numbers???

One thing I noticed about the numbers is that China claims to have a huge number of recovered compared to all other countries....??

[Allan]

I wonder if any Chinese health authorities did their training in Canada.

They seem to have a similar code of conduct and respect for the public's 'right to know' .

[Fitzcarraldo]

Any indications livestock is being affected by this, Ma Li?

[Centurion2000]

BEIJING — Chinese authorities ordered doctors in Beijing to hide patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, from World Health Organization (WHO) experts = Bullet in the back of the head at the nearest laogai camp.

[riri]

They seem to have a similar code of conduct and respect for the public's 'right to know'

Wait until it comes to your town or city and you want to know where the outbreaks are and the officials won't tell you-