The inhabitants of the Chinese capital fear a generalized confinement on the model of that applied in Shanghai for almost two months.
Near-deserted tourist sites and restaurants in “take-out” mode: in Beijing, the threat of confinement weighs on Labor Day holidays. The Chinese generally take advantage of May 1st and the holidays that follow to travel across the country. But this year, the worst Covid outbreak since the outbreak began is forcing many to stay at home.
While China’s largest city, Shanghai, has been locked down for more than a month, the capital Beijing is holding its breath after an epidemic rebound. The city has identified more than 300 positive cases in recent days. In all public places in the capital, it is now compulsory to present a screening test within 48 hours. To curb the contagion, restaurants are prohibited from welcoming customers and can only sell take-out. To the chagrin of a sector that intended to recover its health, during holidays usually conducive to consumption.
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Inevitably, these measures will “have an impact on our sales”, told AFP a woman who only gave her first name, An, met in a restaurant in the Dongcheng district of Beijing, where the Forbidden City is located.
While the Chinese like to meet up with friends or family around good food, the take-out sale is far from ideal. With this system “we make less revenue”, sighs the manager of the establishment.
Universal park closed
As a result, some restaurants in the neighborhood are simply closed, while others require a drug test even for an order placed on the sidewalk. Not far from there, marinated chicken legs and rolls placed in the middle of the street on a stall hardly attract the customers.
In times of epidemic, restrictions are “necessary for the good of the country”, but these are “bad” from a personal point of view, indicates to AFP a server who prefers to keep his name silent. “Usually in one day, we sell 10,000 yuan (1,438 euros) worth of food. Here, it’s only 1,000 or 2,000 yuan (288 euros).”
The May 1 holiday, which ends on Wednesday, usually sees the tourist sites of the capital invaded by hordes of visitors, to the delight of traders. But on Sunday, despite blue skies and spring-like temperatures, there was little crowding of tourists at the Temple of Heaven, an iconic spot where the emperor once came to pray for crops.
The same unusual calm in Wangfujing, a popular shopping street in Beijing that abounds with fashion boutiques, souvenir stalls and traditional restaurants. As for the Universal Studios park, which offers attractions inspired by the films Harry Potter, Jurassic World or even The Minions, the complex has been closed since Sunday and until further notice.
Larger quarantine centers are being built
Faced with the highly contagious Omicron variant, the city of Beijing last week launched a screening campaign for almost all of its 22 million inhabitants. Buildings have been confined, but currently represent a very small part of the population. The Beijingers, however, live in the apprehension of generalized confinement.
A makeshift hospital with around 4,000 beds is already operational and larger quarantine centers are under construction. The Health Ministry reported 36 new positive cases in Beijing on Monday.
The number of contaminations is “on a high plateau”, noted Sunday an official of the city’s health services, Pang Xinghuo. At the same time in Shanghai, the vast majority of the 25 million inhabitants begin their second month of confinement. However, daily infections have tended to decrease in recent days.