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China Clamps Down on Research Into How Coronavirus Pandemic Began

Beijing has brought in extra vetting of any academic work about the origins of the disease.

The Chinese government is censoring the publication of academic research on the novel coronavirus as part of what appears to be an attempt to control the narrative of its role in the origins of the pandemic. A central government directive and online notices published by two Chinese universities, since deleted, stated that studies on the origin of the virus will receive extra scrutiny and must be approved by central government officials. An anonymous Chinese researcher told CNN: “I think it is a coordinated effort from (the) Chinese government to control (the) narrative, and paint it as if the outbreak did not originate in China … I don’t think they will really tolerate any objective study to investigate the origination of this disease.” The researcher reportedly said the notice was issued a few days ago, and only COVID-19 research appears to be subject to the additional checks.