Shanghai is going through difficult times and censorship is completely overwhelmed by social networks, where testimonies are multiplying. You have no doubt already heard the thousands of inhabitants who shout at their windows at night, in rage, frustration, hunger, too, because the fridges are empty for lack of supplies.
The excruciating lament of the prisoners of Shanghai… Never take freedom for granted. pic.twitter.com/4Ln7pIfHiT
— Idriss J. Aberkane Ph.D, Ph.D & Ph.D (@idrissaberkane) April 13, 2022
When a case is detected in an apartment building, the doors are sometimes padlocked from the outside. It is physically impossible to get out; those who risk it are caught manu militari. Loudspeakers on drones or robot dogs come and go, asking residents to follow instructions.
“Go home” on repeat: the atmosphere in Shanghai pic.twitter.com/2EbfA3V094
— Simon Leplatre (@SLeplatre) April 12, 2022
Mandatory screening tests sometimes take place in the middle of the night and positive people taken willingly or by force to huge quarantine centers. Wednesday April 13, in a video (unauthenticated), a resident filmed this scene in the building opposite. Men in white jumpsuits burst into an apartment; the man they are looking for resists and takes refuge on his balcony. To immobilize him, the police then go to four with a stun gun.
#China – A dozen police officers #Shanghai broke into a house with police dogs and took a person to a quarantine camp #Covid_19. They used a stun gun to subdue her.pic.twitter.com/MUQqWKJLUh
—ⓃⒺⓌⓈ—ⒾⓃⓉ·۰•● (@NewsInt_) April 13, 2022
Scenes like these, there are many more circulating on social media. Without knowing if they are authentic. Still, this protest movement is unprecedented, the neighborhood committees responsible for responding to complaints are overwhelmed with requests and under pressure. This almost total confinement in a city of 25 million inhabitants also has economic consequences. Especially since Shanghai accounts for 4% of China’s gross domestic product and is a nerve center for the entry and exit of goods. Gold; road, rail and maritime transport are idling. Several factories have suspended production, including a large Apple subcontractor, Pegatron, which alone assembles more than 20% of iPhones sold worldwide. At the national level, exports are running out of steam and imports are also down, for the first time since August 2020.
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Despite this context, Beijing still does not question its “zero covid” strategy. Faced with criticism, the authorities still agreed to no longer separate positive children from their parents. This is only valid for children under 7 years old. Quarantine has been reduced from 14 to 10 days for residents of apartment buildings where a case has been reported. May only in eight major cities, including Shanghai and Guangzhou. This is only a pilot project, the results of which will be made in just four weeks. It’s a sign, of course, that power is moving, but it’s still very timid. On Wednesday April 13, President Xi Jinping again explained that this “zero covid” strategy remained the alpha and omega of health policy. A dogma that must at least hold until the 20th Party Congress, which takes place in six months. Now is not the time to acknowledge the slightest error in the conduct of the country, whatever the cost.