Coronavirus: China strips virus research from internet

China has just announced restrictions on their academics for publishing research on the origins of COVID-19.

China has announced restrictions on what their academics can publish on the origins of COVID-19 in what sources have said is the country’s latest attempt to “control” the coronavirus narrative.

A Chinese central government directive went out on Friday, April 10, cracking down on universities publishing research related to COVID-19.

Subsequent online notices were put out by two Chinese universities to warn their academics of the new rules, which have since been removed from the internet.

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A billboard bearing Chinese President Xi Jinping's face looking down over a boulevard next to the words ‘Thank you brother Xi’, a message paid for by a pro-government tabloid. Picture: Andrej Isakovic/AFP

According to the directive issued by the Ministry of Education's science and technology department, “academic papers about tracing the origin of the virus must be strictly and tightly managed”.

Under the new policy, all academic papers on COVID-19 will require an extra vetting process before being submitted for publication.

Studies on the origin of the virus will receive extra scrutiny and must be approved by central government officials, according to the now-deleted posts.

The increased scrutiny appears to be the latest effort by the Chinese Government to control the narrative on the origins of the coronavirus pandemic gripping the world.

A couple wearing a face mask cuddle along a park at the Yangtze river in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province early on April 12, 2020. Picture: Noel Celis/AFP

Since late January, Chinese researchers have published a series of COVID-19 studies in influential international medical journals.

Some findings about early coronavirus cases – such as when human-to-human transition first appeared – have proved crucial to containing the spread.

A Chinese researcher, who wanted to remain anonymous, said the move was a worrying development that would likely obstruct important scientific research.

“I think it is a co-ordinated effort from (the) Chinese Government to control (the) narrative and paint it as if the outbreak did not originate in China,” the researcher told CNN.

“And I don't think they will really tolerate any objective study to investigate the origination of this disease.”

The ruling Communist Party has declared victory over the coronavirus, although the announcement has been met with widespread scepticism. Picture: Yan Yan/Xinhua via AP

The directive lays out layers of approval for these papers, starting with the academic committees at universities.

They are then required to be sent to the education ministry's science and technology department, which then forwards the papers to a task force under the State Council for vetting.

Only after the universities hear back from the task force can the papers be submitted to journals.

Other papers on COVID-19 will be vetted by university academic committees based on conditions such as the “academic value” of the study and whether the “timing for publishing” is right.

The directive is based on instructions issued during a March 25 meeting held by the State Council's taskforce on the prevention and control of COVID-19, it said.

The document was first posted on Friday morning on the website of the Fudan University in Shanghai, one of China's leading universities.

People wearing face masks walk inside the East Lake Plum Flower Garden in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province on April 12, 2020. Picture: Noel Celis/AFP

When CNN called a contact number left at the end of the notice, a staff member of the education ministry's science and technology department confirmed they had issued the directive.

“It is not supposed to be made public — it is an internal document,” said the person, who refused to reveal his name.

A few hours later, the Fudan University page was taken down.

The China University of Geoscience in Wuhan also posted a similar notice about the extra vetting on COVID-19 papers on its website. The page has since been deleted, but a cached version remains online.

The Chinese researcher who spoke to CNN added that only COVID-19 research was subject to the additional checks.