Day: November 19, 2022

During the past two weeks, a conspiracy theory alleging that NATO members had donated HIV and hepatitis-infected blood to Ukraine was originally posted and spread on Weibo by “Guyan Muchan,” an influential account with more than 6 million followers. 

Asia Fact Check Lab (AFCL) tracked down and confirmed the pro-Putin Telegram channel Breaking Mash as the disinformation’s source. Further inquiries by the Ukraine-based fact-checking organization StopFake caused the Ukrainian government to release a formal statement debunking the disinformation. 

On Nov. 3, Guyan Muchan, a widely followed Weibo user, published a post claiming to reveal a tainted blood scandal involving NATO and Ukraine. The statement reads:

“Ukraine asked NATO to provide more than 60,000 liters of blood for wounded soldiers in the Odessa, Nikolaev, Dnepropetrovsk, Kharkov and Zaporozhye regions. NATO member countries provided Ukraine with canned blood.

However, Ukrainian medical staff found HIV and hepatitis B and C viruses in the blood after random examinations. Kiev has written to NATO requesting an independent assessment of the donor blood and asking that blood “not be collected on the African continent.”

In the first group, 6.3% of the samples had HIV, 7.4% had hepatitis B and 3.2% had hepatitis C. 

In the second group: 5.9%, 6.8% and 3.1%, respectively.

The information is obtained by leaked files after the Ukrainian government office computers were hacked.”

The post contained three images. The first was a picture of a statement that hackers allegedly had obtained confidential documents from Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal’s email. The second was an alleged letter from Ukraine’s Minister of Health to Shmyhal. The third was the English translation of the letter. Each image’s background contained the word “mash” as a watermark, which AFCL used to trace the post back to its original source.  

Guyan Muchan is one of China’s “patriotic” influencers who in recent years rose to fame by pandering to domestic nationalist sentiment. Her post claiming the use of tainted blood was liked by hundreds of people, with other influential social media figures reposting it to millions more. This “news” swiftly spread on a number of Chinese language websites, including the popular internet news portal 163.com. 

What is the claim’s source?

AFCL was unable to find any reports about the claim from credible English media outlets. A few English websites with poor news credibility did repost it, including the pro-Russia website info.news and the gun-lover community forum snipershide.com. A slew of unreliable Twitter accounts have also posted the claim in English. Chief among them is ZOKA, a user with more than 105,000 followers. Marcus Kolga, director at DisinfoWatch, a fact-checking project under the Macdonald-Laurier Institute in Canada, told AFCL that ZOKA is a “well-known pro-Kremlin account.”

AFCL also found the Russian version of the claim being spread on many websites, forums and social media platforms. After comparing both the publishing time and watermark, AFCL traced the claim back to a post on the Telegram channel “Breaking Mash,” first published at 1 a.m. on Nov. 3. The original post has since gained over 1a million views.

Breaking Mash is the official Telegram channel of the Russian-language website Mash.ru. The website’s content is full of lies and is highly aligned with Moscow’s propaganda, according to Christine Eliashevsky-Chraibi, a media veteran and translator at Euromaidan Press. Mash senior staff are suspected of being close to the Russian government, with company executive Stepan Kovalchuk’s uncles, Kirill and Yuri Kovalchuk, marked as “elites close to Putin” by the United States.S.

In sum, both the claim’s original Russian source along with the English websites and social media accounts that spread the claim all suffer from low credibility. 

Is the claim true?

AFCL deems the Guyan Muchan post to be false. It came from a pro-Russia Telegram channel with low credibility. The Ukraine Ministry of Health refuted the claim in a statement offering more details about blood donation in Ukraine.

The claim alleges that the “scoop” was leaked from the hacked email of Ukraine’s prime minister, Denys Shmyhal. But no credible media outlets reported on the leaked emails.

The statements the claim relies on use questionable language that normally would not be appropriate for official documents. For example, the claim alleges that the mMinister of hHealth demanded that NATO’s donor blood “not be collected on the African continent.” The possibility of such racist language appearing in a formal government document is unlikely.

Eliashevsky-Chraibi said the alleged government letter is “very suspicious” as there’s “no date, no signature, no stamp” and it was “not formal procedure.” 

Through the Ukraine based fact-checking organization StopFake, AFCL checked with the Ukrainian government regarding the veracity of this claim. On Nov. 7, the Ukrainian Ministry of Health published a statement on its official website refuting the claim.

Ukraine has never requested blood donations from any organization outside of the country, and all donor blood needed for the battlefield comes from within Ukraine and meets European standards, according to the ministry’s statement. Whenever there is an urgent need at a blood center, people respond quickly to requests for donations, negating the need for any supplies from outside of the country.

The statement adds that Ukraine does not have a “random sampling” system of donor blood. Instead, it tests all donations to ensure they are safe and reliable. 

The alleged letter from Ukraine’s Minister of Health is a forgery, the statement says. 

Background Information

In late October, the Kyiv Post, a leading English newspaper in Ukraine, published a report that Russia’s Wagner private military company had recruited Russian prisoners suffering from severe infectious diseases, in particular HIV and hepatitis C. This news bears some similarities with the claim made on the Breaking Mash Telegram channel, including the mention of HIV, hepatitis and the war, but makes no mention of NATO or donor blood. The disinformation published by Mash could be meant to discredit NATO as part of Russia’s information warfare.  

Fabricating and spreading virus-related disinformation has been one of Russia’s oft-used tactics since the days of the Soviet Union. In the 1980s, the KGB and its East German counterpart the Stasi carried out the disinformation campaign “Operation Denver.”

The campaign claimed that HIV was a U.S.-made biological weapon; that the virus had been tested on prisoners, ethnic minorities and homosexuals; and that the virus originated in Africa. Since the outbreak of both COVID and the Russia-Ukraine war, “virus” has become a buzzword in public discourse, often attached to false or misleading information. 

References

1. Guyan Muchan’s Weibo Post

https://weibo.com/2150758415/MdmEqF9Zu?from=page_1005052150758415_profile&wvr=6&mod=weibotime 

2. ZOKA’s Twitter post

https://twitter.com/200_zoka/status/1588134915064971264

3. The original source in the “Breaking Mash” Telegram channel

https://tlgrm.ru/channels/@breakingmash/39593 

4. Proekt report about Mash Telegram channel: Cart from the Kremlin

https://web.archive.org/web/20190111184923/https://www.proekt.media/narrative/telegram-kanaly/

5. Statement from the Ministry of Health of Ukraine: We refute yet another Russian fake about low-quality blood for patients

https://moz.gov.ua/article/news/sprostovuemo-chergovij-rosijskij-fejk-pro-nejakisnu-krov-dlja-pacientiv?fbclid=IwAR1_HkjYI78ueYZfhsCwPj0GuEwM5mEvVIDsnzpoCwaD29iAC5rlwdx5vB4

6. Wagner Recruits Prisoners With HIV and Hepatitis C

https://www.kyivpost.com/russias-war/wagner-recruits-prisoners-with-hiv-and-hepatitis-c.html

7. Operation “Denver”: KGB and Stasi Disinformation regarding AIDS

https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/operation-denver-kgb-and-stasi-disinformation-regarding-aids

8. Guyanmuchan spoke at a forum by youth.cn

https://qnzz.youth.cn/tegao/201612/t20161217_8958271.htm

Asia Fact Check Lab is a new branch of RFA, established to counter disinformation in today’s complex media environment. Our journalists publish both daily and special reports that aim to sharpen and deepen our reader’s understanding of public issues. 

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia kicked off its national polls today, with voters streaming to voting centres to elect representatives who will form the next government.

 

The 15th General Election is notable for a large number of new voters, as the voting age has been lowered to 18 years from 21 years old before. Automatic voter registration has also been implemented, allowing anyone over the age of 18 to vote without registering with the country’s election commission.

 

There will be 363,515 election workers, who will operate 8,958 voting centres across the country, to serve a total of 21,173,638 registered voters, the commission said, previously.

 

There are several coalitions vying for power with the Barisan Nasional (BN) being the oldest, having administered the country since its independence in 1957, till its shock defeat in the 2018 national polls.

 

It was succeeded by the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, led by former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad. However, PH collapsed in Feb, 2020, after 22 months in power and was in turn succeeded by two more short-lived governments, first led by former prime minister, Muhyiddin Yassin, who formed the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition, and second led by caretaker Prime Minister, Ismail Sabri Yaakob, who was sworn in as PM in Aug last year.

 

Ismail Sabri dissolved parliament on Oct 10, paving the way for a snap election, citing the need to end the political uncertainty.

 

 

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

KUALA LUMPUR, Polls have opened in Malaysia, with over 21 million eligible voters casting their votes to elect representatives for their respective constituencies for the next five years.

 

Also held Saturday is voting for the Bugaya state by-election in Sabah, which was postponed following the proclamation of an emergency to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Polling stations in Peninsular Malaysia opened from 8 am, and in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan from 7.30 am.

 

According to the Election Commission (EC) website, polling stations in Peninsular Malaysia will close in stages between 12 noon and 6 pm.

 

However, there are polling stations that will close earlier, including a polling centre at Balai Raya Pulau Besar in Mersing, Johor, which will close at 11 am.

 

In Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan, polling stations will close between 11 am and 5.30 pm.

 

According to a statement issued by the EC on Oct 20, a total of 8,958 ordinary voting centres, comprising 38,348 polling stations, were opened throughout the country.

 

The electoral roll which will be used for GE15 contains a total of 21,173,638 voters. Of this number, 20,905,366 are ordinary voters; 146,737 military personnel and their spouses; 118,794 police personnel and their spouses, including those from the General Operations Force (GOF) and their spouses; and 2,741 are absentee voters abroad.

 

A total of 1,393,549 voters aged 18 to 20 will cast their ballots for the first time in GE15, following the implementation of Undi 18.

 

Early voting took place on Tuesday (Nov 15), which saw 94.72 per cent, or 212,961 voters, involving security personnel and spouses, performing their responsibilities.

 

However, the EC has set the election for Padang Serai parliamentary seat to be held on Dec 7 following the death of incumbent cum Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate M. Karupaiya last Wednesday.

 

EC chairman,  Abdul Ghani Salleh, in a statement said that GE15 for the parliamentary seat has been set for Dec 7, while nomination day is on Nov 24 and early voting is on Dec 3.

 

After the nomination process on Nov 5, a total of 945 candidates were confirmed eligible to contest 222 parliamentary seats nationwide, the highest in the country’s election history.

 

Following the decision to hold the Padang Serai parliamentary seat election separately, a total of 939 candidates will vie for 221 parliamentary seats.

 

Karupaiya, 69, was set to defend the seat in a six-cornered clash against Hamzah Abd Rahman (Pejuang-Putra), C. Sivaraajh (Barisan Nasional-MIC), Mohd Bakhri Hashim (Warisan), Azman Nasrudin (Perikatan Nasional-Bersatu) and independent candidate Sreanandha Rao.

 

Meanwhile, a total of 441 candidates are contesting 117 state seats in Perak, Pahang, Perlis and N66 – Bugaya state seat in Sabah.

 

To reduce the risk of COVID-19 infection, Health Minister, Khairy Jamaluddin, said that voters who tested positive for COVID-19 should report their health status in their respective MySejahtera applications, to be informed about the voting guidelines.

 

They are also required to wear face masks and are not allowed to ride in public vehicles including e-hailing. The use of face masks for other voters is highly encouraged.

 

In the meantime, the EC, in its previous statement, said that the use of mobile phones at polling stations (channels) is disallowed for GE15.

 

It said that voters are required to leave their mobile phones in the place provided after receiving the ballot paper, and retrieve it after completing the voting process.

 

As a reminder, notices and posters prohibiting the use of mobile phones will be on display, outside and inside the polling station.

 

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK