by David Stanway and Martin Quin Pollard
SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) – Health restrictions against COVID-19 continue to tighten in Beijing and Shanghai, the two largest Chinese cities, as well as in dozens of other major cities, despite the drop in the number of new cases and public concerns.
Shanghai, a city of 25 million people and a major financial, commercial and industrial center globally, is experiencing its sixth week of lockdown, while other countries have eased or lifted the latest restrictions even as infections spread.
Authorities have warned against any criticism of the zero COVID-19 policy which they say saves lives.
Although the number of new infections in Shanghai has been declining for nearly two weeks, new cases still number in the thousands, prompting authorities to further tighten restrictions.
“We are still in a critical period of epidemic prevention and control,” said Sun Xiaodong, deputy director of the municipal center for disease control.
The city has launched a new campaign to end infections outside quarantine zones, the most significant indicator of whether the outbreak is under control.
Although there has been no official announcement, many residential neighborhoods have received instructions that residents will no longer be allowed to leave their homes, when they could previously take short walks or quick errands .
In some cases, entire neighborhoods have been locked down after a neighbor tested positive.
In Beijing, the number of new daily infections has not exceeded a few dozen cases since the start of the epidemic on April 22, but the difficulties in reducing it significantly have led the authorities to gradually tighten restrictions.
An area in the south-west of the capital banned residents from leaving their neighborhood on Monday and ordered the cessation of all activity not related to the prevention of contamination.
Elsewhere in China, some have been asked to work from home, food services have been banned, parks and some shopping malls have been closed and much public transport is at a standstill.
(Report by the Beijing and Shanghai newsrooms, written by Marius Zaharia; French version Diana Mandiá, edited by Kate Entringer)