Chinese singer Jane Zhang deliberately infects herself with Covid-19, draws public ire

Jane Zhang, Chinese singer, and songwriter issued an apology for deliberately infecting herself with coronavirus (Covid-19) so that she won’t be at risk of infection when she has a concert on New Year’s Eve, local media reported.

38-year-old Zhang allegedly admitted to visiting the homes of ‘sheep’, a colloquial term used in China for virus carriers, ahead of the concert.

Zhang informed about this incident on Weibo, a Chinese social media platform where she has around 43 million followers. “I’ve been prepared for being infected,” Zhang wrote on her handle last week. She further added, “Then I began to catch a fever, my throat began to ache, my nose began to ache, my whole body began to ache, my head began to ache … before I finally fell asleep.”

“I am not sure if it’s appropriate to ask, but does my case with symptoms lasting for only one day count as a [coronavirus] positive case?” (sic) Zhang asked on social media.

After facing backlash from the public Zhang deleted the posts and issued an apology over the same.

Meanwhile, China is bracing for a high number of Covid-19 cases, caused by the BF.7 Omicron variant. China reported a total of 5,241 deaths to date due to the pandemic.

The Chinese government has said that only fatalities caused due to respiratory failure caused by the virus would be counted under the deaths due to Covid-19.

China reports 3,101 fresh Covid-19 cases on Tuesday, which is a rise from the previous day’s figure of 2,722.

Eric Feigl-Ding, a top U.S. scientist has cautioned that over 60 percent of China’s population will likely be infected by Covid-19 in the next 90 days.

The United States has assured the Chinese of its support in tackling the rise of Covid-19 cases. “We are prepared to continue to support countries around the world, including China, on this and other COVID-related health support,” Ned Price, U.S. State Department spokesperson said during the daily press briefing.

FAQs

When was the first Covid-19 case reported in India?
First covid-19 case was reported on January 27, 2020 from the state of Kerala.

How many Covid-19 cases are reported in India?
A total of 4.47Cr cases have been reported till date.