3 Days that Stopped the World | Al Jazeera Investigations

[Applause] it has been a year since i went to wuhan to report on the outbreak in january i would say this pandemic has changed china and the whole world dramatically one year has passed since i went to wuhan but i still can't forget many things that happened there during the days in lockdown [Music] as the festivities of the chinese new year begin two beijing journalists head to wuhan to cover a story about a new type of pneumonia the first to travel is yangjun i am an investigative journalist it's the morning of january 19th when my boss calls me about the virus outbreak in wuhan most chinese people are traveling to their home towns to celebrate days later chen wei took her flight to wuhan people are busy preparing for chinese new year there are lots of people in beijing airport many booked their flights in advance and couldn't change last minute yang jun and chen wei are not the journalists real names [Music] their reporting was censored by the chinese government their videos and notes were smuggled from china and obtained by al jazeera's investigative unit and have never been shown before their stories begin three days before lockdown my name is yangjin i am an investigative journalist from beijing i am told to go to wuhan to get more information about the virus the real number of infections the hospital situation there and the origins of the virus on the train some people have not heard any news about it passengers are not wearing masks [Music] my name is chen wei i'm a journalist from beijing wuhan authorities first announced an infected case at the end of december 2019. like most people i had no idea about the virus and thought it was the common flu information about the outbreak is hidden in secrecy and very difficult to get yang and chen's identities are concealed for their safety their reports are read by actors in the last two or three days the wuhan health committee has been reporting continuous rising numbers of infected cases this shows that the virus has spread in china cases of infection are detected outside of wuhan three patients are confirmed in guangdong and beijing [Music] [Music] [Applause] wuhan health authority said that the few cases of infected patients all worked and lived inside wuhan's seafood market [Music] yang's plan is to investigate the origins of the virus in the seafood market [Music] when i arrive people seem to have no fear or concern about the virus at all on the way to my hotel the taxi driver says he saw the news it said there are very few cases of infected patients the driver says the experts also announced that the virus would not pass from human to human so no need to worry about that foreign there is a pedestrian street next to my hotel the night bazaar is so crowded and most people are not worried i'm wearing a mask and i'm getting strange looks from the crowd a stall owner asks me to take it off he says you are obviously an overworld outsider everything is fine here you should not believe in those online rumors already social media was reporting the disease with much more information than official [Music] sources [Music] after hearing this i almost begin to disbelieve my own judgment they have no idea what's going on or how bad it is they've been kept in the dark yang realizes the virus is serious but he can't imagine that everything will change in three days yang gets a taxi to juan and market and records a discussion with a driver [Music] y'all [Music] foreign yang wonders if there is truth in the theory that the virus came from wild animals sold at the market [Music] so [Music] the driver parks his car in front of the market entrance the market is sealed off with police tape and red barricades [Music] [Applause] i start chatting with some people gathering around the entrance of the market there are shop owners who have some stuff left behind inside the market but the police stop them from gathering their things they say they haven't heard anything about the virus there are police vehicles parked across the market and a cctv camera appointed at the entrance within minutes he's asked to stop [Applause] filming ah [Music] [Applause] foreign his id is taken to the public security bureau it has agents that enforce social order across china they take me to a police vehicle on location yang is held for over an hour the police are detaining me illegally and restricting my freedom foreign [Music] i was only planning to do normal filming and speak to shop owners to find out the truth but after being stopped and detained by the police i have no choice but to film in secret to protect my own safety and my legal rights as a journalist and they a woman claims to be from the wuhan government but doesn't identify herself well [Music] before he leaves [Music] [Music] oh he shows them the photos but continues filming with his phone hello [Music] foreign he deflects the attention of the officers [Music] uh the security officers refused to identify themselves [Applause] foreign i leave the market the security officers are following and tracking me i feel powerless i go to the government publicity department to demand my rights to report they tell me that i do have the right to report in wuhan and no one should stop me but the reality is not the same [Applause] [Music] chenwei is still in beijing where information is scarce but news breaks that the virus is spreading i mainly rely on the chinese media reports as more and more cases that confirm the government takes steps to control the disease [Music] yang's next task is to find out how wuhan's hospitals are coping i'm trying to find out how the main hospital is taking in and treating infected patients yang fears he will be turned away if he identifies himself as a journalist he pretends he has a fever to enter the [Music] hospital i'm sent to an isolated zone for patients with fever separate from the rest of the hospital i think it's for screening patients infected with the coronavirus in the waiting area yang overhears a doctor speaking to a patient she has been ill for 10 days [Music] suspected patients are sent for further testing only then is an infected patient eligible for the isolation treatment at the hospital this arrangement means all patients and staff are exposed to the virus he walks around the hospital grounds but can't get into the isolation ward the building with infected patients is closed off ambulances are bringing in more cases [Music] the next location on his list is wuhan union hospital [Music] [Music] again he pretends to have symptoms he's asked to register they're screening patients with basic questions [Music] only one week earlier the mysterious disease was named 19. [Music] the testing center is a short walk away there are so many wuhan residents queuing to get tested for the virus they need to make an appointment just to wait in line hey because there are so many people waiting for tests and checking into the hospital it is a long long wait [Music] [Music] wuhan residents are reporting that hospitals are unable to cope [Music] in the evening the doctor who led beijing's coronavirus crisis team makes an announcement that changes everything [Music] the news is devastating people now realize how important it is to protect themselves after the doctor's confirmation the whole city becomes nervous everything changes drastically overnight after the doctor declares for the first time that the virus can pass between humans public transport in wuhan is suspended locals are wearing masks and looking very anxious also very few people are out on the streets after the news came out the whole street looks deadly cold while most cases are in wuhan new infections are reported in provinces across china [Applause] in beijing chen way's life is about to change my supervisor calls urgently asking me to go to wuhan immediately when i get off the plane at wuhan airport the staff are disinfecting at the exits and checking passenger temperatures it is very intense all the travelers are wearing masks everyone seems to be talking about the virus outbreak i see faces filled with fear and worry the station has installed infrared monitors they've started taking temperatures at the station entrances only passengers with normal temperatures are allowed inside those with fever are taken away by station personnel to do further checks i take a taxi to my hotel [Applause] the driver talks about the virus it tells me many cases were discovered in the past two days in the streets almost everyone is wearing a mask some people in wuhan are very worried and they're starting to leave i learned that many residents are warning their relatives and friends not to go back [Applause] now the city is in panic i feel that people were worried for you at first as if nothing was happening they are becoming nervous fearful and feeling powerless and lost on social media there are suggestions that the number of cases are under-reported [Music] families are waiting with food parcels for infected patients foreign [Music] foreign [Music] um yang goes back to juan and seafood market he hoped this time he can find out more once i start filming i'm told to stop and i'm taken to a police vehicle [Music] the police tell yang they cannot let anyone in or any goods out foreign about the deadly coronavirus officially hitting the u.s a washington state resident fell ill after returning from wuhan china where the outbreak began the office in beijing calls yang says he hasn't got very far in finding the source of the virus my boss instructed me not to do any investigations of my own everything should strictly follow the official party line any stories of the virus which are not in favor of the government must be approved by the party chen wei also begins her investigation in food markets she's heard that it's hard to gather information about the virus my focus is undercover filming for my investigation i was sent here to look into the wild life trade in mohan dr chong nan chan said the new corona virus probably originated from eating wild to be a restaurant owner seeking wild animals which are considered a delicacy for a new year's feast [Music] foreign [Music] the shop owners say the expert is wrong they have been eating wild animals for so many years without any problems yang is going back to juanan market for the third time along the way he notices more people wearing face masks [Music] [Music] yang has obtained permission to film from the government publicity department i am confident that i will be able to report this time it is january 22nd and i'm at huanan seafood market south entrance that is the officer today everyone is wearing masks we see there's a police car here it's an on-site command unit the atmosphere is so intense a lot of plane clothes police and uniformed security personnel are around the market and if we zoom in we can see officers working in there it has been sealed off no one is allowed even though i tell the market staff and police that i have permission from the government publicity they still stop me from filming what they're doing is against chinese law [Applause] oh [Applause] [Music] um by now 15 provinces across china are affected run the world health organization cannot decide if the outbreak is an international public health emergency the views of the members of the committee considering the information provided was split obviously you need to take it seriously but this is not a major threat for the people in the united states and this is not something that the citizens of the united states right now should be worried about we are now at the wuhan medical treatment center also known as jin jintang this hospital is now solely designated for the treatment of covet 19 cases despite obtaining permission to film he is again prevented from entering [Music] a woman with elderly relatives is also waiting at the gates the hospital won't let mayling's 78-year-old grandfather in her grandfather was tested at the wuhan central hospital the hospital said there were no more beds left and asked her to bring her grandfather here for inpatient treatment a guard returns to say they need a document before her granddad is allowed in she [Applause] guards to help out the guard tells yang to stop filming he again says he has permission foreign medical records [Music] all right the family is not complaining to me the family is trying to tell me more about their situation two officers keep us apart it is so crazy that they are using violence to stop me from talking to the family they snatch away my camera they force me into a security office and say that i am breaking the anti-infection law the lack of medical staff and equipment in wuhan is causing many infected patients to be denied treatment it's a joke and the hospitals are hiding the truth in the early hours of the morning an announcement that will shock the outside world work till midnight i'm about to sleep at 2 a.m when the wuhan government announces a city-wide lockdown most people are already sleeping they didn't see this coming my boss calls me and tells me that they will be closing the city he tells me to leave now he's worried about my safety i suddenly realize how serious the matter is i sit on the bed sweating and feel my heart beating so loud my boss tells me to evacuate wuhan and go back to beijing my first thought is the pandemic must be out of control and will get more and more serious she decides to remain i want to stay in mohan to record and report the development of this virus [Music] i immediately buy tickets to beijing i leave the hotel at 4 30 in the morning we know that the city will shut down at 10 am i see so many taxis and cars heading for the train station and airport the hashtag fleeing wuhan is trending [Music] like me all these people are fleeing wuhan because of the lockdown in a few hours panic spreads quickly all over the city fear of the virus reaches a climax i arrive at the station at 6 00 am and there are so many people here more and more are still coming some take anti-fever medication to pass through scanners some young women are trying to get a ticket out of the city they are yelling at the station staff just get me any ticket to leave now anywhere is fine as long as we can get out of wuhan the news of a lockdown means the virus is already out of control at 10 am wuhan is in lockdown a public transport shutdown and taxi stop services [Applause] i ended up staying for over 80 days [Music] it has not yet become a global health emergency it may yet become one are the words about a pandemic at this point no we have a totally under control it's one person coming in from china it's uh going to be just fine [Music] people start panic buying and stockpiling i talked to nurses and doctors in the isolation wards during lockdown chen is only allowed to film with government approval the controls get tougher i cannot get any real updates because of the restrictions i can't report with freedom as long as the government institutions are involved i'm constantly followed and spied on [Music] i think there are many more infected patients in wuhan than the number of confirmed cases the official number is a fake number far from the truth the death of so many wuhan residents infected with covet 19 the hopelessness of suffering without medical help all these never leave my mind [Music] i [Music] [Applause]

Channel: Al Jazeera English

Views: 1,864,017

Rating: 4.7527199 out of 5

Keywords: #3days, covid, china news, coronavirus mutation, coronavirus origin, healthcare, lockdown, usa, china wuhan, coronavirus, coronavirus pandemic, coronavirus variant, frontliners, mask, quarantine, uk, vaccine, virus, who, who china, who wuhan, wohan, world health organization, world heath organisation, wuhan investigation, al jazeera english, al jazeera english live, al jazeera, aljazeera english, investigation, investigating

Id: abeYukTNmj0

Length: 48min 46sec (2926 seconds)

Published: Mon Jan 18 2021

Reddit Comments

[u/asteroth2]

i find it hilarious after all this and we finally have a vaccine, that literally no one is holding china accountable for keeping this shit quiet in the first place. fuck china.

[u/EverybodyHits]

"We welcome journalists. Just follow the procedures."

[u/fokjoudoos]

TAIWAN NUMBER ONE!!

[u/el-cuko]

“Train to Wuhan”

[u/Skoges]

Fuck China

[u/Bobby_Money]

inb4 deleted

[u/TheMightyDane]

Fuck China. China is asshole!

[u/yognautilus]

I just love how China straight fucked the world for over a year and got away with it. I mean, shit, is it considered getting away with it if they nonchalantly walked away while flipping off the world?

[u/aiafati]

I still can't understand why some people would speak as if China isn't largely to blame for this pandemic. Of course it isn't 100% China's fault. But it's pretty damn evident it was a large player in this unprecedented disaster.