UN accuses Asian nations of censorship during pandemic

GENEVA (AFP): The United Nations human rights chief has warned that China and other Asian countries were using the Covid-19 (coronavirus) crisis as an excuse to clamp down on free expression and tighten censorship.

In a statement by the UNHRC, Michelle Bachelet expressed alarm over how censorship had been tightened in several countries, along with arbitrary arrests and detention of people who criticise their government's response, or even who simply share information or views on the pandemic.