NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Coronavirus: Kiwi-born doctor told to 'go back to China' in Auckland bus incident

NZ Herald
1 Feb, 2020 10:58 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Focus Live: Health Minister David Clark gives coronavirus update

An Auckland doctor says she has been yelled at to "go back to China" - even though she's never been there and was born in New Zealand.

Dr Linda Lum blew her nose while on a bus this week after breathing in dust by a busy road.

"An elderly gentleman 4m away facing away on the other side of the bus shouted at me, 'Go back home to China [or] else we are all going to die'," she told the Herald.

Medical staff in protective outfits wait at the entrance of a clinic for fever patients and patients from Wuhan in Fuyang in central China's Anhui Province. Photo / AP
Medical staff in protective outfits wait at the entrance of a clinic for fever patients and patients from Wuhan in Fuyang in central China's Anhui Province. Photo / AP

"As a doctor I know absolutely proper cough and sneeze etiquette to avoid contagion.
Even if I was sick he was at no risk."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Neither the driver nor the other two passengers on the bus said anything.

It wasn't the first time Lum had heard such a comment, so she chose to ignore the man - assuming it was "plain ignorance".

But when he got off at Auckland City Hospital bus stop on crutches, she thought, "You will have a better than 30 per cent chance your doctor is going to be Asian, so if they start to sniff what will you do then - walk out?"

READ MORE:
• Coronavirus fears trigger anti-China racism around the world
• 'No Chinese allowed': Racism surges as coronavirus spreads
• Premium - Coronavirus sparks racism: 'Send all the Chinese back to where they came from'
• Coronavirus: Queenstown mayor Jim Boult urges NZ not to 'descend to racism and xenophobia'

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Lum spoke the next day to a group of around 60 elderly Chinese at their club rooms in Mangere, on behalf the Auckland Chinese Medical Association.

"The main topic was coronavirus and the aim was to educate them, dispel some myths and teach them about infection control so as to protect themselves, their family and the general public," she said.

"Certainly there was much concern in the audience about the situation as the elderly have a higher chance of catching, falling ill and suffering complications from any infectious disease."

0302VirusMap
0302VirusMap

On Friday Race Relations Commissioner Meng Foon said there were "legitimate, and understandable, public health concerns" and it was important to follow the instructions and advice from the Ministry of Health and Public Health Officers.

Discover more

Business

Coronavirus brings NZ port to its knees

03 Feb 04:51 AM
World

Video from inside Wuhan hospital uncovered

01 Feb 11:43 PM
World

Coronavirus: First death out of China, as toll climbs past 300

02 Feb 03:23 AM
New Zealand

All you need to know about ban on travellers from China

02 Feb 03:12 AM

"It is also important to be aware of obligations under the Human Rights Act, which prohibit discrimination in a number of circumstances and on a wide variety of grounds. These include ethnicity, national origins and having a physical illness and/or organisms in the body capable of causing illness."

Meng Foon, Race Relations Commissioner. Photo / File
Meng Foon, Race Relations Commissioner. Photo / File

There were some exceptions to the general rules, such as if there was an unreasonable risk of infecting others with an illness and steps couldn't be taken to reduce the risk, Foon said.

"We ask all New Zealanders to remain calm and follow instructions from the Ministry of Health and Public Health Officers.

"Please be kind, resist judging, and typecasting people based on their ethnicity, nationality or physical appearance. Victims of the types of abuse that are being reported are as equally worried about their health as other members of the community."

Anyone who believed they had been discriminated against in breach of the Human Rights Act could make a complaint to the commission, Foon said.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

'Extensive backlog': Harbour Bridge crash disrupts Auckland traffic

03 Jul 06:42 PM
New ZealandUpdated

New Zealand tourist killed by charging elephant in Zambia

03 Jul 06:14 PM
New Zealand

'Just incredible': Pupils save choking child on school bus

03 Jul 06:13 PM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

'Extensive backlog': Harbour Bridge crash disrupts Auckland traffic

'Extensive backlog': Harbour Bridge crash disrupts Auckland traffic

03 Jul 06:42 PM

The right southbound lane is blocked while emergency services attempt to clear the crash.

New Zealand tourist killed by charging elephant in Zambia

New Zealand tourist killed by charging elephant in Zambia

03 Jul 06:14 PM
'Just incredible': Pupils save choking child on school bus

'Just incredible': Pupils save choking child on school bus

03 Jul 06:13 PM
Premium
'An avalanche': Home owner of 30 years says his 300% insurance hike is a bad sign for NZ

'An avalanche': Home owner of 30 years says his 300% insurance hike is a bad sign for NZ

03 Jul 06:00 PM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP