SARS conspiracy theory
Encyclopedia
The SARS conspiracy theory began to emerge during the Severe acute respiratory syndrome
(SARS) outbreak in China
in the spring of 2003, when Sergei Kolesnikov
, a Russia
n scientist and a member of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, first publicized his claim that the SARS coronavirus
is a synthesis of measles
and mumps
. According to him, this combination cannot be formed in the natural world and thus the SARS virus must have been produced under laboratory conditions.
Earlier, another Russian scientist, Nikolai Filatov
, head of Moscow
's epidemiological
services, had commented that the SARS virus was probably man-made.
This news caused controversy in many Chinese internet discussion boards and chat rooms. Many Chinese believed that the SARS virus could be a biological weapon manufactured by the United States
, who perceived China's rise as a potential threat to its dominance and superiority in the world.
The failure to find the source of the SARS virus further convinced these people and many more that SARS was artificially synthesised and spread by some individuals and even governments. Circumstantial evidence suggests that the SARS virus crossed over to humans from Asian Palm Civets ("civet cats"), a type of animal that is often killed and eaten in Guangdong
, where SARS was first discovered. This is disputed.
Some people in Taiwan
and the United States have also expressed doubts and speculated that SARS could be a biological weapon developed by mainland China
.
Supporters of the conspiracy theory suggest that SARS caused the most serious harm in mainland China, Hong Kong
, Taiwan and Singapore
, regions where most Chinese reside, while the United States, Europe
and Japan
were not much affected. Conspiracists further point out that SARS has an average mortality rate of around 10% around the world, but no one died in the United States from SARS, despite the fact that there were 100 reported cases. Regarding reasons why SARS patients in the United States experienced a relatively mild illness, the U.S. Center for Disease Control has explained that anybody with fever and a respiratory symptom who had traveled to an affected area was included as a SARS patient in the U.S., leading to earlier treatment in the U.S. than may have been the case elsewhere.
In October 2003, Tong Zeng, a Chinese lawyer and a volunteer in a 1998 Chinese-American medical cooperation program, published a book that again speculated that SARS could be a biological weapon developed by the United States against China. In the book, Tong disclosed that in the 1990s, many American research groups collected thousands of blood
and DNA
samples and specimens of mainland Chinese (including 5000 DNA samples from twin
s) through numerous joint research projects carried out in China. These samples were then sent back to the United States for further research, and could be used in developing biological weapons targeting Chinese. These samples came from 22 provinces in China, all of which were hit by SARS in 2003. Only provinces like Yunnan
, Guizhou
, Hainan
, Tibet
and Xinjiang
were left out, and all these provinces suffered less severely during the SARS outbreak. The author suspects that Japan
is also involved, as many Japanese factories in Guangdong in the 1990s made it compulsory for all workers to have blood tests in the factory annually, rather than asking workers to go to local hospitals for blood tests and a proper physical examination. However Tong Zeng admits that these are only speculations, and he does not have any concrete proof from the study of the virus's genetic sequence.
Some scientists acknowledge the possibility that the SARS virus was man-made, and some have also noticed there is genetic material in the SARS DNA sequence that does not match any previously known virus, implying it could be man-made.
Coronavirus
es similar to SARS have been found in bats in China, suggesting they may be their natural reservoir.
Severe acute respiratory syndrome
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome is a respiratory disease in humans which is caused by the SARS coronavirus . Between November 2002 and July 2003 an outbreak of SARS in Hong Kong nearly became a pandemic, with 8,422 cases and 916 deaths worldwide according to the WHO...
(SARS) outbreak in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
in the spring of 2003, when Sergei Kolesnikov
Sergei Kolesnikov
Sergei or Sergey Kolesnikov is the name of:*Sergei Kolesnikov , Russian businessman and whistleblower*Sergey Kolesnikov , Russian professional road bicycle racer...
, a Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n scientist and a member of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, first publicized his claim that the SARS coronavirus
SARS coronavirus
The SARS coronavirus, sometimes shortened to SARS-CoV, is the virus that causes severe acute respiratory syndrome . On April 16, 2003, following the outbreak of SARS in Asia and secondary cases elsewhere in the world, the World Health Organization issued a press release stating that the...
is a synthesis of measles
Measles
Measles, also known as rubeola or morbilli, is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses...
and mumps
Mumps
Mumps is a viral disease of the human species, caused by the mumps virus. Before the development of vaccination and the introduction of a vaccine, it was a common childhood disease worldwide...
. According to him, this combination cannot be formed in the natural world and thus the SARS virus must have been produced under laboratory conditions.
Earlier, another Russian scientist, Nikolai Filatov
Nikolai Filatov
Nikolai Mikhailovich Filatov was a Russian scientist in the field of theory of shooting from small arms, Hero of Socialist Labor ....
, head of Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
's epidemiological
Epidemiology
Epidemiology is the study of health-event, health-characteristic, or health-determinant patterns in a population. It is the cornerstone method of public health research, and helps inform policy decisions and evidence-based medicine by identifying risk factors for disease and targets for preventive...
services, had commented that the SARS virus was probably man-made.
This news caused controversy in many Chinese internet discussion boards and chat rooms. Many Chinese believed that the SARS virus could be a biological weapon manufactured by the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, who perceived China's rise as a potential threat to its dominance and superiority in the world.
The failure to find the source of the SARS virus further convinced these people and many more that SARS was artificially synthesised and spread by some individuals and even governments. Circumstantial evidence suggests that the SARS virus crossed over to humans from Asian Palm Civets ("civet cats"), a type of animal that is often killed and eaten in Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
, where SARS was first discovered. This is disputed.
Some people in Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
and the United States have also expressed doubts and speculated that SARS could be a biological weapon developed by mainland China
Mainland China
Mainland China, the Chinese mainland or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term that refers to the area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China . According to the Taipei-based Mainland Affairs Council, the term excludes the PRC Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and...
.
Supporters of the conspiracy theory suggest that SARS caused the most serious harm in mainland China, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Taiwan and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, regions where most Chinese reside, while the United States, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
were not much affected. Conspiracists further point out that SARS has an average mortality rate of around 10% around the world, but no one died in the United States from SARS, despite the fact that there were 100 reported cases. Regarding reasons why SARS patients in the United States experienced a relatively mild illness, the U.S. Center for Disease Control has explained that anybody with fever and a respiratory symptom who had traveled to an affected area was included as a SARS patient in the U.S., leading to earlier treatment in the U.S. than may have been the case elsewhere.
In October 2003, Tong Zeng, a Chinese lawyer and a volunteer in a 1998 Chinese-American medical cooperation program, published a book that again speculated that SARS could be a biological weapon developed by the United States against China. In the book, Tong disclosed that in the 1990s, many American research groups collected thousands of blood
Blood
Blood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....
and DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
samples and specimens of mainland Chinese (including 5000 DNA samples from twin
Twin
A twin is one of two offspring produced in the same pregnancy. Twins can either be monozygotic , meaning that they develop from one zygote that splits and forms two embryos, or dizygotic because they develop from two separate eggs that are fertilized by two separate sperm.In contrast, a fetus...
s) through numerous joint research projects carried out in China. These samples were then sent back to the United States for further research, and could be used in developing biological weapons targeting Chinese. These samples came from 22 provinces in China, all of which were hit by SARS in 2003. Only provinces like Yunnan
Yunnan
Yunnan is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the far southwest of the country spanning approximately and with a population of 45.7 million . The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders Burma, Laos, and Vietnam.Yunnan is situated in a mountainous area, with...
, Guizhou
Guizhou
' is a province of the People's Republic of China located in the southwestern part of the country. Its provincial capital city is Guiyang.- History :...
, Hainan
Hainan
Hainan is the smallest province of the People's Republic of China . Although the province comprises some two hundred islands scattered among three archipelagos off the southern coast, of its land mass is Hainan Island , from which the province takes its name...
, Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
and Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
were left out, and all these provinces suffered less severely during the SARS outbreak. The author suspects that Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
is also involved, as many Japanese factories in Guangdong in the 1990s made it compulsory for all workers to have blood tests in the factory annually, rather than asking workers to go to local hospitals for blood tests and a proper physical examination. However Tong Zeng admits that these are only speculations, and he does not have any concrete proof from the study of the virus's genetic sequence.
Some scientists acknowledge the possibility that the SARS virus was man-made, and some have also noticed there is genetic material in the SARS DNA sequence that does not match any previously known virus, implying it could be man-made.
Coronavirus
Coronavirus
Coronaviruses are species in the genera of virus belonging to the subfamily Coronavirinae in the family Coronaviridae. Coronaviruses are enveloped viruses with a positive-sense single-stranded RNA genome and a helical symmetry. The genomic size of coronaviruses ranges from approximately 16 to 31...
es similar to SARS have been found in bats in China, suggesting they may be their natural reservoir.
External links
- ParaPundit: Conspiracy theories in China
- San Francisco Chroncle's report
- SARS Crisis: Don't Rule Out Linkages To China's Biowarfare Article by Richard D. Fisher Jr. for The Jamestown Foundation.
- People's Daily's report on Tong Zeng's book (simplified Chinese)
- Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao reports the conspiracy theory and Hou's assertion