Thousands of people were taken to quarantine centers in Beijing despite negative coronavirus tests. More than 13,000 residents of the settlement of Nanxinyuan, in the southeast of the Chinese capital, had to leave their homes overnight, according to photos and a statement from government officials that were distributed on online networks. They were therefore taken to quarantine centers on buses.
The reason for the measure was 26 new infections found. Officials in Beijing’s Chaoyang District said quarantine will be ordered for all residents of Nanxinyuan from “midnight on May 21 for seven days”. He also said, “Please cooperate. Otherwise, you will face the legal consequences.”
Beware of tight measurements
In Beijing, more than 1,300 people have been infected with the omicron variant of the coronavirus since late April. Restaurants, schools and tourist attractions are closed indefinitely. Local public transport is drastically restricted and working from home is mandatory in many districts.
In view of the quarantine order in Nanxinyuan, users of the online network Weibo expressed fear that the corona virus measures in the capital would be reinforced in a similar way as in the economic metropolis of Shanghai. In April, thousands of people were taken to quarantine centers a few hundred kilometers away.
China is facing its worst coronavirus outbreak since the start of the pandemic for weeks. The country had strict restrictions since the beginning of the pandemic and thus managed to keep the number of infections at a low level in international comparison for a long time. China continues to adhere to a strict zero Covid strategy, setting it apart from many other countries.