American diplomats in China complain they were forced to take anal swab tests for coronavirus
- Washington said procedure was ‘undignified’ and told staff to refuse to take it
- Beijing has since claimed the test was given ‘in error’ as diplomats are exempt
- China’s Foreign ministry spokesman denied the claims made by US officials
American diplomats in China have claimed they were forced to take anal swab tests for coronavirus.
Washington complained the procedure was ‘undignified’ and told staff to decline the test if asked to take one.
Beijing has since claimed the test, mandatory for incoming travellers in some parts of China, was given ‘in error’, as diplomatic personnel were exempt.
A medical worker collects a swab in Wuhan, Hubei Province of China, earlier this week
To collect the nucleic acid samples, the swab needs to be inserted about three to five centimetres (1.2 to 2 inches) and rotated several times. A video widely circulated online shows a doctor holding a visual demonstration of the procedure
A US source told Vice: ‘The State Department never agreed to this kind of testing and protested directly to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs when we learned that some staff were subject to it.’
Foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a daily news briefing in the Chinese capital: ‘To my knowledge…China has never required U.S. diplomatic staff stationed in China to conduct anal swab tests.’
A State Department representative said it was ‘committed to guaranteeing the safety and security of American diplomats and their families, while preserving their dignity’.
Some Chinese cities used samples taken from the anus to detect potential infections amid stepped-up screening during a spate of regional outbreaks ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays.
Tests using anal swabs can avoid missing infections as virus traces in faecal samples or anal swabs could remain detectable for a longer time than in those from the respiratory tract, Li Tongzeng, a respiratory diseases doctor in Beijing, told state television last month.
Stool tests may also be more effective in finding infections in children and infants as their waste carries a higher viral load than adults, researchers at the Chinese University of Hong Kong said in a paper published last year.