The retired PLA surgeon is named by state-run media for the first time The state-run media has finally recognised the contribution of a retired People's Liberation Army doctor who exposed government efforts to cover up the Sars crisis. Articles issued yesterday by the China News Service and Xinhua admitted for the first time that it was Jiang Yanyong, 72, who forced the government to come clean. On April 6, Dr Jiang wrote a letter to international media accusing health ministry officials of lying about the scale of the Sars problem. Subsequent news coverage abroad of Dr Jiang's allegations prompted the government to sack the health minister and the mayor of Beijing, and to reveal the extent to which Sars had spread. 'I haven't received any type of pressure or threats,' Dr Jiang was quoted as saying by China News Service. 'I haven't received any type of restriction. My life remains normal.' The articles go on to describe Dr Jiang's life - how he 'gets up at 7am and rides his bicycle to PLA Hospital 301 in Beijing to chat with colleagues, before returning home to surf the internet and read books'. The articles also mention that he began studying medicine in 1952 at Peking Union Medical College Hospital and joined the PLA in 1954. Before retiring a few years ago, Dr Jiang was director of surgery at PLA Hospital 301. Dr Jiang told the South China Morning Post that officials were worried about 'incorrect' news in overseas media that 'Dr Jiang has gone missing', and that such reports would hurt China's image abroad. 'They just want the world to know that I'm safe and that no one has hurt me. These articles are not meant to praise me, to make me famous, or imply that officials now recognise my contributions,' he said. 'In China, we have said too many lies for too long. All I did was tell the truth. I did nothing special.' Li Xiguang, director of Tsinghua University's Centre for International Communication Studies, said the government had now lifted censorship of Sars news coverage. 'The government has already killed two tigers [by sacking health minister Zhang Wenkang and Beijing mayor Meng Xuenong],' said Professor Li, 'and by doing so it admitted that it lied and was wrong'. But has the government really lifted restrictions on Sars news media coverage? Dr Jiang recently told the Post that he would be willing to meet and be profiled for a feature as long as the PLA Hospital 301's political director gave permission. The political director referred the matter to the PLA Propaganda Department. After repeated calls, an official in charge of media affairs said a meeting was not possible. 'We can't arrange such an interview,' the official said. 'This isn't allowed for foreign news media.'
