China reiterates its adherence to zero tolerance for Covid-19 in a situation it defines as “complex and serious”. The eastern nation “still faces the dual risk of imported infection and the spread of the epidemic, and the situation of prevention and control is still serious and complex,” according to National Health Commission spokesman Mi Feng. “We must adhere to the ‘people’s lives first’ principle and the general policy of dynamic compensation,” the spokesman said, citing the inflexible ‘zero Covid’ line that has sparked intense controversy and sparked anger at a societal level and have contributed to the slowdown in economic recovery.
This strategy envisages sudden lockdowns despite a handful of infections, mass testing of millions of people and quarantine as soon as one enters from abroad. China has seen a spike in infections across the country in recent days, with outbreaks in over fifty cities across the country and patchy restrictions. Today, China has identified 3,837 cases of contagion, of which 596 were identified as internal transmission (plus 61 imported) and 3,180 new asymptomatic infections, very high figures for the zero-tolerance line to the virus that has been in effect for nearly three years after the outbreak in China applies to the outbreak of Wuhan Covid-19. However, the number of new infections is slightly down compared to yesterday when it hit six-month highs at over four thousand (4,045 in total).
