Chinese scientist who mapped the sequence of Covid-19 in protest against laboratory closure

Photos of Zhang sleeping outside the laboratory are circulating on social media. Zhang Yongzhen was the first scientist to map the genomic sequence of the Covid-19 virus, in January 2020, without government authorizationat a time when a pandemic had not yet been declared and when the virus was gaining strength in Europe.

Since that time, Zhang’s laboratory has been the subject of several setbacks, with the closure appearing to be the last episode.

According to the British Guadianthe Shanghai Health Authority issued a statement explaining that Zhang Yongzhen’s laboratory was closed for “security reasons”which is undergoing renovation and Zhang’s team was offered a new space to work.

However, Zhang countered that the offer was only made after his team was expelled from the laboratory and that the new facilities do not offer the necessary conditions for work. Despite being unable to provide a statement, a colleague of the scientist confirmed to the Associated Press that the protest is taking place.

“I’m not leaving, I’m not giving up, I’m following science and the truth. The Public Health Center is refusing me and my students entry into the laboratory.” These were words written by Zhang Yongzhen on the Chinese social network Weibo. However, the publication was deleted.

At the beginning of 2020, Zhang’s laboratory sent a notice to Chinese authorities warning of the danger of the spread of the covid-19 virus. After seeing the laboratory closed, many scientists abroad asked the Chinese government to make the discoveries of Zhang and other Chinese scientists public.

After the first incident, Zhang published, without government authorization, the genome sequence of the virus, explaining that it was spreading outside of China.giving rise to the last great pandemic.

Despite recognition from the foreign scientific community, Zhang Yongzhen suffered a lot of pressure and reprisals. In addition to being banned from working together with other scientists, Zhang lost his position at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

One year after the discovery of the covid-19 sequence, Zhang Yongzhen said, in statements to the newspaper The New York Timeswho had no regrets regarding the disclosure of the discoveries made.