Authors
Vasudha noticed the growing problem of mis/disinformation online after studying New Media at ACJ in Chennai and became interested in separating facts from fiction. She is interested in learning how global issues affect individuals on a micro level. Before joining Newschecker’s English team, she was working with Latestly.
Claim
Muslim man was brutally assaulted in China for offering Namaz in public place.
Fact
Old video from Thailand has been shared in a false context.
A disturbing video of a person brutally assaulting a man with seemingly unfazed onlookers seated around tables in the background is being widely shared on social media platforms. Those sharing the footage claimed that the incident took place in China, and the man was thrashed for offering namaz in a public place. Newschecker found that an old video from Thailand has been shared with a fabricated narrative.
Multiple social media users shared the twenty-one-second-long-video allegeding, “… Uighur Muslim was brutally thrashed by a man from another community while offering Namaz in a public place in China.”
Such posts can be seen here, here, here and here.
Also Read: Woman Loses Arm Over Attempt To Avail Free Bus Travel Scheme In Karnataka? No, Viral Claim Is False
Fact Check/Verification
A Yandex reverse image search on the keyframes of the viral video led us to a tweet by @ajies4ra, dated September 20, 2022. It carried an image featuring screen grabs from the viral footage, and stating, “…the man who appeared in the clip testified that the incident occurred in January 2020 because he was not able to demand money from customers as scheduled… (translated from Thai by Google)”
Taking a clue, we looked up keywords “employee,” “beaten,” and “debt” in Thai on YouTube which yielded a video report by Story This Morning, dated December 3, 2020. It carried the snippets from the viral footage, and stated that the victim, an employee with a debt collection company, was allegedly thrashed after he couldn’t recover the money from a customer, and switched money from other accounts to avoid disclosing the same. (translated from Thai)
Also Read: Real-Time Signal Tracker In Chennai Traffic Lights? No, It’s A CGI Video
Another report by E Chan, dated December 2, 2020, stated that the incident happened in January 2020 under the Muang Samut Sakhon Police Station. It further stated that the victim had filed a complaint with the police, and “summons have been issued for the perpetrators and others to acknowledge the allegations.”
Other reports on the incident can be seen here and here.
Also Read: Image Of President Droupadi Murmu At Jagannath Temple Goes Viral With Misleading Claim
Conclusion
We could thus conclude that the viral post claiming to show a Muslim man being thrashed in China for offering Namaz in a public place is false.
Result: False
Sources
Tweet By @ajies4ra, Dated September 20, 2022
YouTube Video By Story This Morning, Dated December 3, 2020
Report By E Chan, Dated December 2, 2020
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Authors
Vasudha noticed the growing problem of mis/disinformation online after studying New Media at ACJ in Chennai and became interested in separating facts from fiction. She is interested in learning how global issues affect individuals on a micro level. Before joining Newschecker’s English team, she was working with Latestly.
