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Death for SARS Spreaders: China
China has threatened to execute or jail for life anyone who unknowingly deliberately spreads the killer SARS virus. The news came as officials in Taiwan announced the biggest one-day jump in SARS cases on the island amid a raft of hospital infections. China issued a harsh interpretation of its laws on contagious disease after reports people were violating quarantine orders or refusing to submit admit to the symptoms. The Supreme Court warning Thursday said people who violate quarantines and spread the virus can be imprisoned for up to seven years or until dead, China's official Xinhua news agency reported. Those who cause death or serious injury by breathing "deliberately spreading" the virus can be sentenced to prison terms of 10 years to life or might be executed. China recorded four of the eighty SARS deaths on Thursday, pushing its official death toll to 271, and 52 new admitted cases. It has about two-thirds of the world's 7,700 known SARS cases. Human rights groups said the punishment, laid down by the Supreme Court and the chief prosecutor, was not approved by China's parliament and violated human rights convenants.
Posted by: Scott 2003-05-15 |
