Restrictions on personal freedom, under the name of health: the government's COVID health app in China.
GHRTV
29-06-2022
Myriam Whaibe
China and Human Rights Researcher
Global Human Rights Defence
An official coronavirus health app is now the perfect tool for the Chinese government to limit personal freedom, under the name of public health and safety. Today, life in China is clearly governed and controlled by an app, uploaded on everyone's smartphones. Having this app is even more important than a passport. This app decides where one can go, when does someone have to isolate, cancel trips, go to the doctor, and all of that arbitrarily, without any notice.
The Chinese authorities have not given you the choice to download it or not, since you cannot even go to work, or get the grocery shopping without it.
“Once downloaded, the software operates as a traffic light: Green means "safe from COVID," and allows the holder access to all buildings, including grocery stores and offices”, reports Elizabeth Palmer and Shuai Zhang on the CBS news.
The app can turn yellow or red without you even knowing the reason, you could have just been present in the same coffee shop as a confirmed case and that is enough to turn your app yellow and start limiting your freedom.
The app is a personal violation and abuse and it does not only track everyone's movements but also sends personal information on where everyone’s been and with whom to China's Big Brother-esque national health authority.
This Covid-Health app is the perfect tool for limiting personal freedom even more in China, and while the government says it's only used to control the spread of the coronavirus, it's open to abuse.
