--- title: "China Deletes Post Mocking COVID Death Toll" description: "Chinese law enforcement likened the burn off from its recently launched space station module to the mass cremations taking place in India on social media." date: "2021-05-03" modified: "2021-05-03" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/china-deletes-post-mocking-covid-death-toll" categories: - "Future Society" tags: - "china" - "coronavirus" - "covid19" - "india" - "the digest" --- # China Deletes Post Mocking COVID Death Toll ![Chinese law enforcement likened the burn off from its recently launched space station module to the mass cremations taking place in India on social media.]() *\Image: Futurism\* ## Mocking a Crisis In a post uploaded to social media, China's top law enforcement body mocked the [humanitarian crisis going on in India]() right now. A crushing second wave of COVID-19 is sending India's death toll soaring, with bodies literally being burned on funeral pyres as [crematoriums overflow]() in a horrifying reminder that this pandemic is far from over. But in a chilling post on Chinese social media website Weibo, the Communist Party’s Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission juxtaposed the burn off from its [recently launched space station module]() to the mass cremations taking place in India, [*Bloomberg* reports](). "China lighting a fire versus India lighting a fire," the post read, accompanying an image of the space station module. ## Change of Tune The post was promptly deleted, with countless Chinese social media users expressing their disgust at it. "How can this be approved \[by censors\]? It's a complete disrespect of human life," one comment read, as [translated by *CNN*](). "We hope everyone gives attention to the Chinese government and mainstream public opinion supporting India’s fight against the epidemic," the country's foreign ministry told *Bloomberg* in a statement. China is also continuing to send shipments of its vaccine to India. Tensions have been high as of late between the two Asian countries. A border dispute, for instance, [killed dozens just last year](). In sum, it's an ugly illustration of nationalism during an ongoing humanitarian crisis. While many Communist Party members may not have stood behind the message of the now-deleted post, it's an indictment of judgment among the party's ranks. **READ MORE:** [China Deletes Social Media Posts Mocking India Amid Backlash]() \[*Bloomberg*\] **More on China:** *[Oops, More Huge Chinese Space Debris Is Tumbling Back to Earth]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()