Shanghai has a population three times as large as New York City. Since March 27th, Shanghai residents are under strict Pandemic Lockdown.
Chinese authorities discovered a large increase in case numbers, more than 20,000 cases per day, so they locked down 25 million people’s city. Residents were placed in extreme poverty and forced to comply with brutal containment and control measures. Food supplies are running low as residents cannot leave their homes. The government is trying to provide food for the people, though they often do not deliver it in time or consistently. Many people are finding it difficult to get the medications they require in order to remain healthy. CNN reports that many people have been killed in medical emergencies after they were turned down. They couldn’t get care if there weren’t negative COVID test results. A viral Weibo post stated that “We aren’t killed by Covid but by the Covid Control Measures.”
Authorities have placed strict measures to isolate COVID-positive persons and some mother reports that they forcibly removed their COVID infected children from them. The health authorities claim that parents can appeal and get permission to be separated from their children. Parents are allowed to bring their children with COVID to hospital and isolation wards. In practice, it isn’t clear how or if this will be implemented.
Shanghai resident Lily Chen stated that “it’s not virus that scares people in this country, it’s the anti-Covid chaotic measures that have created risks to well-being for the elderly, children and companion pets.” Bloomberg. “I now realize we can only rely on ourselves—not the government—to protect our own families.”
The viral video shows a Shanghai family taking their dog to COVID for quarantine after it chased down a van. The dog was supposedly released into the city by the couple, in an attempt to save it, rather than being kept at home for the quarantine (where it would be careless and die). A COVID prevention worker, wielding an axe, promptly shot the dog to death. This isn’t the first instance of brutal treatment by Chinese authorities of animals in pursuit COVID control.
You can make a great leap from your home. People are driven crazy by hunger, so how is this possible? https://t.co/i1wnRiwcg2
— Alex Turnbull (@alexbhturnbull) April 5, 2022
People who violate, or attempt to violate the state-mandated quarantine and lockdown are punished. However it’s difficult to determine the extent of the punishment due to aggressive censorship by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Video footage of harsh punishments circulated in Shandong and other cities.
Disturbing video of COVID volunteers forcibly shaving someone who stepped outside of the house in Heze, Shandong (山东省菏泽市鄄城县凤凰镇) pic.twitter.com/TI49QzRnqa
— Alexander Boyd (@alexludoboyd) April 5, 2022
Some on Weibo, a social media platform suggest the aboveCould be parodie, with others noteThe “forcible shaving of the left side” refers to an insulting practice that was widely employed during the Cultural Revolution.
These measures form part of CCP’s COVID Zero strategy. It aims to eliminate COVID from China’s borders. This is often done through aggressive regional lockdowns such as the one in Shanghai. Also, strict border control and regular testing are some of its methods. Half of China’s over-80s have not been vaccinated. Chinese vaccinations prove less effective than Western ones. The death toll from this COVID epidemic is unknown. CCP numbers can be notoriously inaccurate.
What Is The extent to which Shanghaians are upset by the deprivation they are forced to live in is evident. Weibo and other online platforms have received a lot of government criticism, which can be difficult to find. Residents in one suburban area chanted, “We don’t want to starve.”
One drone said to them, “Control your soul’s desire for freedom” as it broadcast COVID policies across the city. This is a clear indication of how serious CCP authorities take citizen concerns.