Following the downfall of former Hubei provincial party chief Jiang Chaoliang, another official implicated in the Chinese Communist Party’s initial cover-up of the COVID-19 outbreak — former Wuhan mayor Zhou Xianwang — is now under investigation.
The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission of the CCP announced on July 8 that former vice chairman of the Hubei Provincial People’s Political Consultative Conference Zhou Xianwang is suspected of “serious violations of discipline and law” and is currently under investigation.
The official notification from the CCP did not specify the reasons for Zhou Xianwang’s downfall.
Public records indicate that Zhou Xianwang, born in November 1962 in Hubei, has held various positions in the Hubei government, including director of the Hubei Provincial Commerce Department, director of the provincial Office of Foreign Capital, and secretary of the Huangshi Municipal Committee. In 2017, he served as the vice governor of Hubei Province and mayor of Wuhan.
The COVID-19 outbreak originated in Wuhan, Hubei province in late 2019. Public information revealed that on the afternoon of December 30, 2019, a doctor at Wuhan Central Hospital, Ai Fen, shared a test report in a department WeChat group showing a patient had tested positive for a high-confidence indicator of SARS coronavirus. This information quickly reached Dr. Li Wenliang, who warned his fellow classmates via WeChat. Subsequently, Li Wenliang was suppressed by authorities.
In early January 2020, Wuhan police summoned eight individuals who had spread information about the epidemic on the internet under the guise of spreading rumors. Authorities then claimed for several days that the outbreak was “preventable and controllable.” Due to the CCP’s cover-up, the outbreak spiraled out of control and quickly spread worldwide, resulting in numerous deaths.
At the start of 2020, top officials in Hubei province and Wuhan city faced public backlash on social media for allegedly concealing and delaying information about the epidemic.
Former Wuhan mayor Zhou Xianwang publicly admitted to the delayed disclosure of information. However, on January 27, 2020, during an interview with CCTV, Zhou Xianwang implied that the primary responsibility for concealing the outbreak in the early stages lay with the central government. He stated that as a local government official, they could only disclose information after receiving authorization.
Within the CCP, conflicts between superiors and subordinates are usually kept secretive, and Zhou Xianwang’s rare statement quickly sparked discussions.
According to official media reports, the nationwide “epidemic prevention work” is said to be “personally commanded and deployed” by the CCP leader Xi Jinping. It is widely believed that officials in Hubei and Wuhan became scapegoats for the Beijing authorities to some extent.
Following this, a purge in the Hubei government took place. In February 2020, then-Hubei Provincial Party Secretary Jiang Chaoliang and Wuhan Secretary Ma Guoqiang were removed from their positions. However, it was not until January 2021 that Zhou Xianwang was reassigned as the vice chairman of the Hubei Provincial People’s Political Consultative Conference before retiring in January 2023.
Regarding Zhou Xianwang gradually stepping out of the spotlight, Princeton China Scholar Society Executive Chairman Chen Kui-de once told Radio Free Asia that there were internal disagreements within the CCP on how to handle Zhou Xianwang. Authorities moving Zhou Xianwang out of the public eye aimed at downplaying discussions and accountability surrounding the early phase of the epidemic.
In August 2021, former Hubei Provincial Party Secretary Jiang Chaoliang was appointed to a standing committee member of the National People’s Congress, seen by many as a “soft landing.” However, on February 21 of this year, Jiang Chaoliang was investigated.
Independent commentator Cai Shengkun revealed on a self-media program in February this year that he learned from a friend familiar with Jiang Chaoliang that Jiang’s main issue was dining with a deputy minister in May 2024 and discussing the Wuhan epidemic, saying, “From the outbreak of the epidemic to the blockade of information and handling of Li Wenliang, all of it was strictly in accordance with Xi Jinping’s instructions by the Central Office. Every step taken by Jiang as the Party Secretary of Hubei in dealing with the epidemic was approved by the Party Central Committee and Xi Jinping, including the closure of the Wuhan Institute of Virology and the shutdown and demolition of the seafood market, all of which were direct orders from the central leadership.”
Cai Shengkun stated that ultimately, the authorities shifted this responsibility onto Jiang Chaoliang, who internally felt discontent and to some extent bore the blame for Xi Jinping.