Chengdu woman faces cyber-harassment after contracting COVID-19

As Chengdu rolls out mass testing and reintroduces social distancing rules in the wake of a fresh cluster of COVID-19 cases, the social media shame machine has been in overdrive, making patients who test positive for the virus targets of ire, condemnation, and — in the worst case — death threats.

The most recent victim is a 20-year-old woman surnamed Zhao, who was hospitalized with a confirmed COVID-19 infection on December 9 after patronizing several entertainment venues.

Zhao’s diagnosis was made public by health officials in Chengdu on Tuesday. In an announcement (in Chinese), the local health department mentioned Zhao’s last name, her residential community, and the places she had visited in the two weeks prior to the test. It also noted that Zhao contracted the virus through her grandparents, who had tested positive on Monday.

The intention was to alert anyone who might have come into contact with Zhao, but the effect was to encourage public scrutiny of her lifestyle. The announcement revealed that Zhao had visited a number of bars and clubs, which led to a torrent of negative comments, with many critics scolding Zhao for her “irresponsible” and “selfish” behavior at a time when the pandemic remained a public health threat in many parts of China.

The public outcry soon morphed into online shaming and harassment when an anonymous man allegedly uncovered Zhao’s identity and disclosed her personal information on his social media account. It’s unclear how he obtained the information.

On Weibo, the hashtag “Chengdu confirmed case of granddaughter” (#成都确诊病例孙女#) has become the key feature of a fierce shaming campaign, generating hundreds of thousands of  posts excoriating Zhao. A resident in Chengdu wrote (in Chinese), “She didn’t go to one club, she went to three. She continued to take public transportation. She knew her grandparents were not feeling well. Her hands were filled with germs. Anyone she touched would probably get sick. It was beyond thoughtless and reckless.” Another commenter said (in Chinese), “At this point, she’s pretty much the enemy of Chengdu.”

Much of the criticism was leveled at Zhao’s supposed enthusiasm for clubbing and drinking, which was seen by many as an indication of Zhao’s “decadent lifestyle.” A Weibo user wrote (in Chinese), “Is she a sex worker?,” and went on, “Club-hopping all night seems like a desperate attempt to get laid.”

Some denunciations even took the form of death threats. “She deserves to die. She’s a bitch who endangered many people,” a Weibo user commented (in Chinese). “If she magically recovers from COVID-19 in the end, she still needs to pay a price for her recklessness.”

As the online backlash spun out of control, Zhao responded to the criticism in a statement (in Chinese) to news aggregator Jinri Toutiao. “I would like to sincerely apologize to residents of Chengdu,” she wrote. “Since I was hospitalized, I’ve seen many rumors about me on the internet, many of which were slander and vitriolic comments about me and my family. It’s beyond me to understand why so many people attacked me. I just accidentally contracted the disease. I am a victim, too.”

Zhao stressed that she wasn’t aware of her grandparents’ health status when she hung out in public, and that her job as a liquor promoter required her to work in bars at night. She also begged for the harassment to stop. “I don’t know who disclosed my phone number, but I’ve been receiving insults through text messages and calls in the past few days. This is my first time experiencing the destructive power of an online mob,” she wrote.

Many commenters supported Zhao’s apology, and condemned her critics for unfair personal attacks. “Stop making her a scapegoat for the uptick. No matter how they behaved, COVID patients aren’t at fault,” a Weibo user wrote (in Chinese), while another one noted (in Chinese), “She deserves an apology from those who shamed, harassed, and insulted her.”

Today, Chengdu police said (in Chinese) that they had identified the 24-year-old man who publicized Zhao’s full name, phone number, and home address on social media, and that he had been given an “administrative punishment” for violating Zhao’s privacy. Meanwhile, in a press conference today, Péng Qīnghuá 彭清华, the Party chief of Sichuan Province and the head of local pandemic control efforts, emphasized (in Chinese) the need to protect patients’ privacy and vowed strong action to curb COVID-related cyberbullying.