At the same time, the ruling party rolled out a
massive propaganda effort to portray its leaders
as the heroes of the outbreak and deflect
accusations they allowed the virus to spread due
to politically motivated foot-dragging.
Government spokespeople have suggested the
coronavirus’ origin is unknown, contradicting
earlier official statements that it came from
Wuhan. A foreign ministry spokesman said
the virus might have been brought by visiting
American military officials, a claim that
prompted an angry response from Washington.
Wuhan suffered 2,547 coronavirus deaths,
accounting for about 80% of China’s total fatality
toll of 3,186, according to the National Health
Commission. The country had a total of 81,470
confirmed cases, though both the number of
cases and the death toll are believed to under
count the real number of victims.
Officials are under orders to revive
manufacturing, retailing and other industries
while also preventing a spike in infections as
people return to work.
This week, visitors to Wuhan were required to
report how they arrived and their reason for
coming. Hotel guests were checked twice a day
for fever. They were required to show a code on
a smartphone app that tracks the user’s health
status and travel.
Authorities set aside five hotels to quarantine
visitors, including foreigners who lack Chinese
identity cards. Hotel staff in protective coveralls
sprayed guests and their luggage with disinfectant.
Passengers who wanted to board a public bus
had to show the smartphone health code to
volunteers in red vests.