www.channelnewsasia.com
Asia
China reported three new deaths from COVID-19 over the weekend, all elderly people in Beijing. (File photo: AFP/Noel Celis)
22 Nov 2022 12:25PM (Updated: 22 Nov 2022 12:25PM)
BEIJING: China's capital Beijing posted a record number of new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday (Nov 22), with the city hunkering down under a tightening chokehold of restrictions that have sent schools online, closed many restaurants and forced employees to work from home.
More than 28,000 new infections were reported nationwide - nearing the record high since the pandemic began - with Guangdong province and the city of Chongqing logging more than 16,000 and 6,300 cases respectively, health authorities said.
New cases in Beijing have also jumped in recent days, more than doubling from 621 last Sunday to Tuesday's 1,438 - a pandemic record for the city.
(Graphic: AFP/John Saeki)
The last major economy still welded to a zero-tolerance COVID-19 policy, China enforced snap lockdowns, mass testing and quarantines to control outbreaks to great success in the earlier stages of the pandemic.
But the latest spiralling outbreak is testing the limits of that playbook, with officials keen to avoid citywide lockdowns like Shanghai's two-month ordeal in April, which marred the finance hub's economy and international image.
Three elderly Beijing residents with underlying diseases died from COVID-19 over the weekend, authorities said, marking China's first deaths from the disease since May.
While the capital has so far avoided a blanket shutdown, there have been widely enforced snap lockdowns of individual buildings and long polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing queues due to the requirement for a 24-hour negative test for entry to most public spaces.
Over the weekend, authorities advised residents to stay at home and not travel between districts, and on Monday required travellers to the city to test more times after they arrive.
Many tourist attractions, gyms and parks have been closed, with large-scale events such as concerts cancelled.
Among the steps was a reduction of compulsory quarantine times for international arrivals.
Multiple Chinese cities cancelled mass COVID-19 testing last week, but some later reinstated them, underlining the difficulty of controlling the fast-spreading Omicron variant.
Shijiazhuang, which had previously cancelled mass testing, began a partial lockdown on Monday after cases surged, while several districts of southern epicentre Guangzhou also locked down the same day.
The limited relaxation has not marked a reversal of zero-COVID, which has left China internationally isolated, wreaked havoc on the economy and sparked protests in a country where dissent is routinely crushed.
Asia
Beijing sees record COVID-19 cases as China outbreak spirals
22 Nov 2022 12:25PM (Updated: 22 Nov 2022 12:25PM)
BEIJING: China's capital Beijing posted a record number of new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday (Nov 22), with the city hunkering down under a tightening chokehold of restrictions that have sent schools online, closed many restaurants and forced employees to work from home.
More than 28,000 new infections were reported nationwide - nearing the record high since the pandemic began - with Guangdong province and the city of Chongqing logging more than 16,000 and 6,300 cases respectively, health authorities said.
New cases in Beijing have also jumped in recent days, more than doubling from 621 last Sunday to Tuesday's 1,438 - a pandemic record for the city.
The last major economy still welded to a zero-tolerance COVID-19 policy, China enforced snap lockdowns, mass testing and quarantines to control outbreaks to great success in the earlier stages of the pandemic.
But the latest spiralling outbreak is testing the limits of that playbook, with officials keen to avoid citywide lockdowns like Shanghai's two-month ordeal in April, which marred the finance hub's economy and international image.
Three elderly Beijing residents with underlying diseases died from COVID-19 over the weekend, authorities said, marking China's first deaths from the disease since May.
While the capital has so far avoided a blanket shutdown, there have been widely enforced snap lockdowns of individual buildings and long polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing queues due to the requirement for a 24-hour negative test for entry to most public spaces.
Over the weekend, authorities advised residents to stay at home and not travel between districts, and on Monday required travellers to the city to test more times after they arrive.
Many tourist attractions, gyms and parks have been closed, with large-scale events such as concerts cancelled.
Markets rattled by fears of fresh COVID-19 curbs in China
Several Beijing districts shut schools as China COVID-19 cases rise
China announces 1st COVID-19 death in almost 6 months
China declared its most significant easing of coronavirus measures to date on Nov 11, billed as an "optimisation" to limit the economic and social impact of zero-COVID measures.Among the steps was a reduction of compulsory quarantine times for international arrivals.
Multiple Chinese cities cancelled mass COVID-19 testing last week, but some later reinstated them, underlining the difficulty of controlling the fast-spreading Omicron variant.
Shijiazhuang, which had previously cancelled mass testing, began a partial lockdown on Monday after cases surged, while several districts of southern epicentre Guangzhou also locked down the same day.
The limited relaxation has not marked a reversal of zero-COVID, which has left China internationally isolated, wreaked havoc on the economy and sparked protests in a country where dissent is routinely crushed.
