Corona lockdown in Shanghai: “They feed us like rabbits”

The Chinese city of Shanghai is trying to contain an omicron outbreak with strict lockdowns. Frustration is growing among the population – people are being treated and cared for poorly.

The lockdown in the 26 million metropolis of Shanghai has been extended for most people in the city. The lockdown was announced for eastern Shanghai until Friday, but neighborhoods where positive cases were detected will remain cordoned off for an additional seven to 14 days. The city informed residents in a letter. According to indications, only two districts are said to have been exempted from the measures, but this has not yet been checked.

The west of the city has also been in strict lockdown since Friday. This means that people have to stay in their homes and are dependent on the government for food supplies. In the past few days, there have been bottlenecks in some parts of the city. Even Chinese state media have reported “difficulties”, for example with the supply of food and medical supplies.

A rare apology

Yan lives in Pudong in the eastern part of Shanghai. He only wants to give his last name when he is critical of the government. “The food markets in our district, where we can usually order online, are all closed. We can’t get the groceries we need.” The government has not sent any help so far. “We are completely dependent on the mutual help of our neighbors.”

In a step that is rare in the People’s Republic, the city administration apologized on Thursday. The government underestimated the spread of the omicron variant and did not prepare enough for the increase in new infections.

“Government would have the resources”

Yan says he can understand that in a city as big as Shanghai with a population of more than 26 million, it’s difficult to reach every corner of the city. But he also says: “If the government wanted to do a good job, it could have done it. Because it has a lot of resources if it had only planned well. Beyond that, there is no official, reliable information.”

“They feed us like rabbits,” says another resident in the eastern part of the city. The government delivered a head of cabbage, two potatoes, spinach and a piece of ginger to her and her family in one day. That’s all. From this she is supposed to provide for herself, her husband and her parents in need of care.

Criticism gets louder

There is no real protest against the Covid measures in China. There is no freedom of the press or freedom of expression in the People’s Republic. But criticism is getting louder. Above all, medical care is causing people concern, says Fang, who has also been locked in his apartment for several days.

“Especially the elderly are suffering from this dire and extreme situation. It is the people who regularly need medical help. During the lockdown, they cannot get the treatment or medication they need.”

Relatives have already reported on social networks that two dialysis patients and people with asthma and heart problems have died in Shanghai, China’s largest metropolis. Several residents shared when asked ARD that the government is not responsive to their needs and that medicines are not being made available. In many residential buildings there are chat groups in which the neighbors help each other. That gives them security.

People organize themselves via chat groups

Many are afraid of being tested positive. Because in China that means being taken to a hospital or to a designated isolation facility. This also applies to asymptomatic cases and close contacts. In Shanghai, these facilities are reaching their capacity limits. In large exhibition halls and sports stadiums, beds are close together, there are only narrow partitions – if at all.

In the social networks, the living conditions there cause great dissatisfaction. People join together in chat groups in Wechat – the Chinese equivalent of Whatsapp – to work together to ensure that they are allowed to stay at home if they test positive.

Children separated from parents

In addition, according to media reports, children and infants are separated from their parents if both parents are positive. The children are placed in a separate facility if no one in the family can look after them. The Shanghai Municipal Women’s Association has expressed concern over a case in which a mother posted on social media that she didn’t know if her child was doing well for several days.

Chen Erzhen, deputy head of Ruijin Hospital in Shanghai, said in an interview with Chinese state-run newspaper People’s Daily that the scale of the outbreak in Shanghai is larger than in Wuhan two years ago. However, the severity is lower due to the milder omicron variant.

Doubts about the official figures

However, the figures from the city of Shanghai raise doubts. According to several international media reports, a hospital for elderly people in Shanghai is particularly affected by corona infections. A nurse told the BBC that people had already died there. The city of Shanghai has not reported any new Covid deaths since the recent outbreak.

With the arrival of Omicron, China is experiencing the largest corona outbreak since the pandemic began two years ago. The city of Shanghai and the northeast Chinese region of Jilin currently have the most corona infections in the People’s Republic. Almost 10,000 new infections were reported nationwide in one day, including almost 7,800 asymptomatic cases.

Although the numbers are low by international comparison, the government continues to adhere to a strict zero-Covid strategy. Wu Zunyou, head of the Chinese disease agency CDC, is quoted in the Chinese state media as saying that the public must prepare for a long fight against the virus. He justifies the strict measures by saying that this is the only way China can prevent the health system from being overloaded and a large number of deaths among the elderly and people with underlying diseases.

In the case of Shanghai, according to media reports, Chinese experts assume that the number of new infections will fall to zero within two weeks.