"Reward Offered for Reporting Wuhan Residents Found"

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Park Sun-mi]

As the number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia) surged nationwide during the Spring Festival (Chinese Lunar New Year) holiday, local governments have introduced a bounty system to thoroughly quarantine people coming from Wuhan.

According to the People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, on the 29th, the Jingxingkuang area of Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province, announced that the Novel Coronavirus Control Headquarters will directly implement a "bounty system for reporting personal information of people from Wuhan." The reporting targets are people who have come from Wuhan since January 14 this year, those who have visited Wuhan, and those who have had contact with Wuhan visitors. If someone reports individuals who are not registered in the local government statistics, the informant will receive a bounty of 2,000 yuan (approximately 330,000 KRW).

In other areas within Shijiazhuang City, such as Lvchuan and Zhengding, it was also announced that a reward of 1,000 yuan per person will be given for reporting unregistered Wuhan residents staying in the area. Since Hubei Province, where Wuhan City?the origin of the virus?is located, has the highest number of confirmed novel coronavirus cases, the atmosphere of rooting out people from Wuhan and Hubei Province by local governments is likely to continue spreading for the time being.

Before the Chinese authorities' lockdown of Wuhan on the 23rd, it is estimated that about 5 million people moved from Wuhan, a city with a population of around 10 million, to other parts of China or abroad. The Chinese government has also stated that the rapid spread of the novel coronavirus was due to people's movement during the Spring Festival period.

Because the spread of the novel coronavirus accelerated during the Spring Festival, a period of high population movement, managing people coming from Wuhan has become a key factor in preventing the virus's spread. Many local governments in China consider people from Wuhan to have a high risk of infection and have implemented policies to quarantine them at home or designated locations for at least two weeks. In some areas, civilians?not soldiers?have even taken up arms to block the entry and exit of people from Wuhan and Hubei Province, resulting in farcical scenes.

In villages near Hubei Province, residents themselves have filled small gaps not covered by government road controls with soil using heavy machinery to enforce quarantine. Additionally, checkpoints have been set up around villages near Hubei Province, where villagers armed with rifles are directly preventing people from Wuhan and Hubei from entering the villages.