"Manipulation and Politicization of COVID-19 Origins"
Missouri Filed Lawsuit Against China Five Years Ago
The Chinese side has filed a civil lawsuit against the state of Missouri in the United States, demanding substantial compensation related to COVID-19.
On December 18, Yonhap News, citing the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post, reported that last week Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway was notified of a civil lawsuit filed with the Wuhan Intermediate People's Court in Hubei Province, China. The lawsuit seeks damages totaling 356.437 billion yuan (approximately 74.6 trillion won).
This lawsuit was filed on April 30 by three parties: the Wuhan city government, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which oversees the institute. The defendants are the state of Missouri, represented by Governor Mike Kehoe; Eric Schmitt, the current senator and former Missouri Attorney General; and Andrew Bailey, the current Deputy Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
The plaintiffs claimed that the defendants politicized COVID-19 and attempted to stigmatize China. They also alleged that the defendants manipulated the investigation into the origins of COVID-19 and falsely accused China of concealing information and stockpiling personal protective equipment such as masks. In addition to compensation for damages, the plaintiffs are demanding a public apology through media outlets such as The New York Times, People's Daily, and YouTube.
This lawsuit is a counteraction to one filed five years ago in a U.S. court by Missouri and other parties. At that time, Senator Schmitt, then Missouri Attorney General, filed a lawsuit against China. The defendants in that case included China, the Chinese Communist Party, government ministries, the Hubei provincial government, and the Wuhan city government, which are now plaintiffs in the current lawsuit. The lawsuit alleged that China's concealment of information led to the global spread of COVID-19, resulting in trillions of dollars in economic damage. In March, a U.S. federal court ruled that the defendants were responsible for concealing information and stockpiling protective equipment during the COVID-19 outbreak, and ordered them to pay Missouri more than 24 billion dollars (approximately 35.5 trillion won).
At the time of the ruling, Bailey, then Missouri Attorney General and now Deputy Director of the FBI, called it a "monumental victory," stating, "We will seize Chinese-owned assets, including farmland in Missouri, and collect every penny owed."
Attorney General Hanaway commented on social media that the Chinese lawsuit was a "delaying tactic" and reaffirmed her commitment to collecting the 24 billion dollars awarded by the U.S. court. She added that the current lawsuit "has no factual basis and no legal merit," and stated, "Whatever false ruling the Chinese court may issue, we will easily overcome it and prevent enforcement against Missouri residents."
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