With the goal of zero contagion to the community, Beijing has tightened its control over Covid-19, penalized businesses that break the rules or exceed restrictions, and urged residents to monitor their own movements.
Since the end of April, the Chinese capital of 22 million faces dozens of new cases every day. While these are primarily in quarantine areas, a few have been detected in the wider community, illustrating the challenge the high contagion of the Ômicron variant poses to even the strictest pandemic containment policies in the world.
The “zero covid” approach remains the focus of the Chinese government, despite the damage to the world’s second-largest economy and global supply chains, while Shanghai, China’s commercial and business hub, and several other giant cities are also affected by partial lockdowns or other restrictions. .
Beijing’s top health official, Zhong Dongbo, said at a news conference on Wednesday that the war against Covid in the capital was at a critical juncture “like a boat sailing against the current and risking retreating if not advancing.”
But he added that Beijing cannot completely stop and must keep its economy running, suggesting that officials do not expect a Shanghai-style quarantine.
This week, Beijing stepped up its quarantine efforts and curtailed workplace participation as more districts issued work-from-home requirements or guidelines. He also suppressed those who did not follow his instructions.
source: Noticias
