Father blames China’s Covid policy for son’s death that sparked online anger

A file photo of a medical worker in protective suit collecting a swab from a resident at a free nucleic acid testing site following new cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), in Lanzhou’s Chengguan district, Gansu province, China. The Lanzhou incident began trending on social media after a video was shared on Nov 1 of Wenxuan receiving CPR while on the back of a three-wheeled truck, along with a comment suggesting he died due to delays getting treatment. — Reuters

BEIJING: The father of a three-year-old boy who died on Nov 1 from carbon monoxide poisoning in northwest China said strict Covid-19 policies “indirectly killed” his son by causing delays obtaining treatment, in a case that has sparked social media outrage.

The boy’s death is the latest incident to trigger blowback over China’s strict zero-Covid policy, with one critical hashtag racking up 380 million reads on Nov 3 on the Twitter-like Weibo platform.