China locks down millions over COVID outbreaks

Beijing — Authorities stated on Tuesday that China has placed millions of its citizens under a renewed lockdown in response to new COVID-19 breakouts, as the government maintains its hard-line stance on suppressing the virus. The sanctions affected approximately half of the 6 million residents of the port city of Dalian, as well as an unspecified number in Chengde and Shijiazhuang in Hebei province, all approximately three hours from Beijing.

The lockdown in Dalian was scheduled to last five days, but authorities have in the past extended restrictions based on the number of newly detected cases.

Beijing has been virtually untouched thus far, despite the fact that travel into and out of the capital has been restricted and citizens are tested practically daily.

People line up at a COVID-19 testing booth on August 30, 2022, in Beijing, China. Bloomberg/Getty

Cities such as Chengdu in the southwest, Shenyang in the northeast, and Jishui in the southeast have also implemented partial lockdowns.

Such measures are imposed under China’s “zero-COVID” policy, which sharply contrasts with other nations’ efforts to live with the virus via progressive relaxing of restrictions, immunizations, improved medicines, and voluntary isolation.

China rejects WHO criticism of its “zero-COVID” approach. 03:13

China has mainly kept its borders closed to international travelers, and those who do arrive must undergo to more than a week of quarantine in hotels with frequently inadequate sanitary conditions. Masking and routine testing are also standard, and anyone who has had close contact with a known virus carrier is forcibly brought to field hospitals.

The World Health Organization has deemed China’s policy unsustainable, and a Chinese think-tank issued a rare public disagreement with the ruling Communist Party on Monday, stating that the restrictions that have shut down cities and disrupted trade, travel, and industry must be changed to prevent a “economic stall.”

The Anbound Research Center provided no specifics regarding potential reforms, but stated that President Xi Jinping’s administration must prioritize reviving slowing growth. After relaxing anti-disease restrictions, the United States, Europe, and Japan are experiencing economic growth, the report stated.

China’s COVID-19 epidemic prompted stringent restrictions. 02:03

The think-tank stated in a paper titled “It’s Time for China to Adjust Its Virus Control and Prevention Policies” that preventing the possibility of economic stagnation should be a top concern.

Previous lockdowns have trapped tens of millions to their homes for weeks at a time. Earlier this year, a rigorous lockdown in Shanghai’s main metropolis and business hub prompted online and in-person demonstrations about a lack of food and medical facilities.

China reported 1,717 instances of local transmission on Tuesday, including 52 cases in Liaoning province, where Dalian is located. The great majority of asymptomatic cases were reported in Sichuan province, whose capital city is Chengdu.

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