The Ministry of Health Director-General has taken aim at "keyboard warriors" targeting families affected by coronavirus in New Zealand, saying they’ll hurt the country's ability to stamp out the potentially deadly illness.
Dr Ashley Bloomfield says those affected need our support, not online abuse.
"There has been some hurtful commentary on social media around the family that was announced yesterday as having a positive case," he said today from a press conference about New Zealand's third case of Covid-19.
"I want to call out attacks online, by so called keyboard warriors.
"This sort of behaviour is likely to harm and compromise our efforts to, as a country, address this challenge.
"We don’t want people to feel like they shouldn’t come forward. We want people with symptoms to come forward and not feel like they will be ostracised and criticised for that.
Dr Bloomfield finished on the subject by adding he realises the "vast majority of Kiwis are reasonable and supportive".
His comments come after Auckland Regional Public Health Service Director Dr William Rainger yesterday said the Kiwi family which has been at the target of online abuse has done everything right and has minimised the risk to others.
"The woman with the virus has gone straight into isolation with her family when she was told she was suspected of having Covid-19.
"Yet they have become the focus of sustained and abusive bullying on social media and are being hounded by the media.
"There is a high level of anxiety and concern in the school and wider communities, but it is not acceptable to attack people who have been caught up in this global outbreak. They have taken all the right actions to protect others.
"As a public health service, we are worried that such attacks will lead people to hide any illness that might be Covid-19, and not seek medical attention.
"We will not be able to contain this spread of this illness if the public response is so hostile towards cases and their families," he said.
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