File photo: beekeeper

 A 45-year-old beekeeper in Yimen County, Yunnan Province committed suicide on Thursday after he discovered swarms of bees in his apiary had died, local police said Monday.

The news of Liu Decheng's suicide went viral with many netizens raising suspicions it might have to do with the impact of the epidemic outbreak on small and micro-enterprises. The wife of the deceased, however, denied the claims. Speaking to the Global Times on Monday she confirmed her husband's death is not related to the outbreak.

"There was a very little impact of the epidemic outbreak on the death of my husband," Liu's wife, surnamed Duan, told the Global Times.

"The epidemic has impacted all industries and this is something beyond our control," she said. "My husband's died because he couldn't bear the death of the bees."

Liu's body is still at the funeral parlor waiting for cremation following which his remains will be sent back to his household registration place in Sichuan Province, a source close to the Yimen County's police station told the Global Times on Monday, noting that the reason behind his suicide is still under investigation.

"He was not a local resident, he brought bees all the way from Sichuan Province," the source said, adding that there were hardly any beekeepers in the region.

After a news article about Liu's death surfaced on Chinese social media platforms it immediately triggered concerns over the possible impact of the epidemic on small business owners. Because of the epidemic outbreak, roads and villages have been closed, and bee farms are unable to transfer production, which caused the deaths of Liu's bees, the article read.

During this crisis period, there has been a rising fear among some business owners on the possibility of big losses to their business. Industrial analysts said although such losses are unavoidable, rational judgment is still necessary when it comes to each individual case.

Wei Jigang, a research fellow with the Development Research Center of the State Council, told the Global Times on Monday small and micro enterprises and individual business owners have relatively weak ability to resist risks amid the outbreak.

"Individual business owners should also learn to adapt to the changes in the market environment and conditions by adjusting business mode and concept," he said.

Meanwhile, Wei also noted when it comes to the possible impacts of the outbreak, central and local governments are introducing corresponding policies to support private small and micro enterprises to reduce the possible risks and impacts amid the outbreak.

Fu Jinling, director of the Social Security Department of the Ministry of Finance, stressed at a press conference on Friday the government will roll out policies to help enterprises, especially small, medium and micro enterprises, to reduce the burden and help resume production at  the earliest

Global Times