Despite all of China’s efforts to contain the coronavirus pandemic and the implementation of the “zero COVID cases” policy, the country has been experiencing a record increase in the incidence for three consecutive days. People tired of constant restrictions began to protest, the media reported on Twitter.
New morbidity highs have been recorded in China for the third day
Thus, on November 25, China reported 35,183 new COVID-19 infections, of which 3,474 were symptomatic, and 31,709 were asymptomatic.
There were no fatalities among this number. However, Beijing’s policy is strict, they are trying to overcome the disease, so despite the previously announced minor easing, they announced a tightening of quarantine.
New quarantine quarters are built in Guangzhou
Currently, the authorities of 31 provinces have reported outbreaks of the disease. Among them is the capital Beijing (more than 22 million inhabitants). Guangzhou – a large commercial city in the country’s south (18.5 million people) and several other megacities.
Thus, in Guangzhou, where most of the cases were recorded, a facility is being built that will accommodate 87,000 people. This will be a quarantine quarter.
Protests and discontent are growing
All this is happening despite mass testing, partial lockdowns, and mandatory quarantine not only for the patients themselves but also for people who have been in contact with them.
In China, all these restrictive measures continued to operate all the while the authorities of many other countries were gradually returning life to the pre-quarantine period.
China’s “zero COVID-19 cases” policy has hit the country’s economy and the lives of ordinary people hard, provoking an extremely sharp reaction.
Dissatisfied people began to organize protests, such as at the world’s largest iPhone factory in Guangzhou.
Chinese officials insist that the quarantine measures are required to protect people’s lives from the virus, which, according to official estimates, has killed only six out of tens of thousands of people with the related symptoms.
An egregious case occurred in the northwestern city of Lanzhou. Due to quarantine restrictions, a 3-year-old boy died of gas poisoning in a closed complex after he was not allowed to be immediately taken to the hospital.
Then, two weeks later, a 4-month-old girl died in a quarantined hotel in Zhengzhou after a 12-hour delay in receiving medical care.
The mother is in despair. A video of a mother crying with her child with a high fever and begging to take her child to the hospital was shared online.
According to the World Health Organization, the number of deaths worldwide from COVID-19 has decreased by almost 90% since the beginning of 2022.