Recently, two employees of a hospital in Zhejiang drowned in a hotel pool in Thailand, drawing online attention. On October 15, an official notice stated that online rumors claiming the two were murdered and had their organs harvested are false.
Global Times subsequently published a commentary urging the public to view Southeast Asia rationally, to oppose fabricating false information and chasing traffic by exploiting sudden incidents, and to avoid causing further harm to the bereaved families.
The article noted that crimes involving online scams and human trafficking in Southeast Asia warrant vigilance, but unverified rumors also circulate online. Some self-media outlets blow individual cases out of proportion and even call for a blanket boycott of Southeast Asian tourism, an approach that easily creates unnecessary panic.
The article stressed that preventing crime is one thing; demonizing an entire region is another. Before traveling or working abroad, people should follow official safety advisories, verify recruitment information, and stay alert to high-paying lures and scam traps, but they should not treat unverified information as fact.
Personnel exchanges between China and ASEAN are close. The article noted that in 2025, two-way tourism visits between China and ASEAN exceeded 45 million, and travel, family visits and business ties affect the livelihoods of many families and merchants.
The article ended by calling for rigor and restraint when discussing overseas safety issues: people should raise risk awareness while avoiding sweeping generalizations, let truthful information replace rumors, and preserve normal people-to-people exchanges between China and Southeast Asian countries.