Doctor who exposed Sars cover-up under house arrest in China, family confirms

The Chinese military surgeon who exposed the government’s cover-up of the the severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) epidemic in 2003 has been placed under de facto house arrest since last year, according to his friends and family. The fate of 88-year-old Dr Jiang Yanyong, a retired general in the People’s Liberation Army, has been brought under the spotlight after a whistleblower doctor, Li Wenliang, who exposed the coronavirus epidemic, died last Friday at the age of 34.

Jiang has had his contacts with the outside world cut off and his movements restricted since April last year, after he wrote to the top leadership asking for a reassessment of the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy movement, said a close friend, on condition of anonymity. His wife, Hua Zhongwei, confirmed he is currently confined to his home.

“He is not allowed to be in contact with people outside. He is at home. He has no means of communication [with outside],” she said. “His health is not good. He is not in a good mental state either. He is not very well.”

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