The stated purpose of the health codes is to monitor and prevent the spread of the virus. However The Epoch Times has obtained internal documents that suggest the real purposes go beyond monitoring the virus toward monitoring individuals and maintaining “social stability.”
The health code system developed by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba was first adopted in February to monitor its employees’ health. With the help of Ant Financial, a sister company of Alibaba, the system was introduced publicly in the eastern city of Hangzhou. Around the same time, internet giant Tencent also developed its version of a health code system in collaboration with authorities, through its app WeChat.
Since the system was rolled out nationwide, it has become a major risk assessment tool for the virus. As the regime strictly implements containment measures according to the mobile apps, people’s lives have been quickly and drastically affected.
For months, this smart phone-based QR code system has successfully helped the regime to control people’s movements. The system records the user’s frequency and time spent at or near a virus outbreak and covers such details as local streets and towns.
But some people expressed privacy concerns over the personal information they must enter into the health code app.
Internal Documents Provide Clues
The Epoch Times recently obtained a series of internal documents from China that revealed how the regime has utilized the health code system for the purpose of strengthening control of the population.The document was obtained from a source who has proved reliable in the past.
The document said, “this is to strictly implement the central, provincial, and municipal work requirements” and strengthen the health code’s application in local areas and its coverage of public places such as transit stations, malls, supermarkets, businesses, hospitals, scenic spots, hotels, restaurants, traffic checkpoints, and public transportation to “ensure the safety and stability of the Two Sessions.”
The document also requires CCP officials to improve their “ideological awareness,” and make full use of the health code as a security check system to serve the Two Sessions.
The Baoding City Office of the Leading Group for Response to Epidemic Diseases issued a “Notice to the city commerce bureau regarding ineffective implementation of the epidemic supervision and control” on June 25. The notice stated that since the outbreak in Beijing, the city has “entered into a wartime state,” but individual units and departments have failed to implement virus prevention measures.
The notice particularly mentioned that on June 12, a confirmed COVID-19 patient surnamed Liu (from Li county), went to Wanbo Plaza (the tallest building in Hebei Province, a landmark in Baoding City) and RT-Mart. The tracking system found that neither of the above two business sites implemented prevention and control measures such as temperature checks, code scanning, registration of personal information, and guidance to wear masks.