- China, which fiercely polices its internet, has been consistently censoring posts that protest the lockdown.
- U.S. Firms in China Cut Investment, Revenue Goals on Covid Zero Meanwhile, China’s capital has so far avoided a city-wide lockdown but continues to tighten restrictions to keep a lid on new cases, which fell to 49 on Sunday from 62 on Saturday.
- All regions in Chaoyang, Shunyi, Fangshan and other neighbourhoods that found cases in the past seven days will conduct three rounds of mass Covid tests starting Tuesday, according to information shared at the press conference.
As Shanghai’s lockdown enters its seventh week and pandemic restrictions in Beijing continue to be tightened, videos of people being dragged from their houses by health workers in hazmat suits circulated on Chinese social media Sunday before being taken down on certain platforms as reported by Yahoo.
New infections
The videos — which purported to show Covid-19 positive patients and their close contacts tussling with the workers — come as Shanghai tightens some aspects of its intensive lockdown despite a drop-off in new infections.
People living in the same building as confirmed virus cases now also risk being transported to government-run quarantine facilities, according to local residents and widely circulated social media posts.
The ramping up of curbs comes even as the city reported its fewest cases in more than six weeks, with 3,947 new infections on Sunday, down slightly from 3,975 on Saturday.
Bloomberg News reporters viewed the video but were unable to verify when and where it was taken.
Other videos showing hazmat-suited workers banging on the door of an apartment and taking the occupants to quarantine appear to have been deleted.
Covid Zero policy
China’s Covid Zero policy requires all cases and their close contacts to be isolated in government facilities as a way of snuffing out transmission.
The strategy was effective at quashing Covid early on in the pandemic but is being challenged by more transmissible variants like omicron.
The country’s ongoing pursuit of the strategy is leaving it increasingly isolated, with other parts of the world dismantling pandemic curbs and living alongside the virus, making the scenes in China all the starker.
China, which fiercely polices its internet, has been consistently censoring posts that protest the lockdown.
U.S. Firms in China Cut Investment, Revenue Goals on Covid Zero Meanwhile, China’s capital has so far avoided a city-wide lockdown but continues to tighten restrictions to keep a lid on new cases, which fell to 49 on Sunday from 62 on Saturday.
The capital city had 50 local Covid cases in the past 24 hours by 3 p.m. Monday.
Schools Shut
Officials on Sunday told all residents in Beijing’s district of Chaoyang — home to embassies and offices of multinationals including Apple Inc. and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. — to work from home.
This followed an order to shut down some businesses providing non-essential services, such as gyms and movie theatres, in the district to minimize infections.
All schools in Beijing will remain closed until further notice.
Uncertainties persist around Beijing’s virus situation, local health official Pang Xinghuo said at a Monday briefing.
All regions in Chaoyang, Shunyi, Fangshan and other neighbourhoods that found cases in the past seven days will conduct three rounds of mass Covid tests starting Tuesday, according to information shared at the press conference.
Concern About Jobs
During the lockdowns and intensive response to Covid, Premier Li Keqiang warned of a “complex and grave” employment scenario.
According to a statement released late Saturday, Li directed all government departments and regions to prioritise steps targeted at helping enterprises retain employees and weather the current problems.
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Source: Yahoo
