The communist regime in Beijing has loosened Covid restrictions in the wake of nationwide protests, reports say.
Many of the quarantine and testing requirements that have been strictly enforced have been discontinued. Communist leaders also curtailed the power of local officials to shut down entire city blocks.
It was a quick turnaround as Chinese leader Xi Jinping and other senior Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials had only recently emphasized that zero-Covid lockdowns were still necessary.
"The speed of Beijing’s retreat from its pandemic regime suggests the country’s leaders are now more concerned about the damage those controls have caused to China’s economy than the risk of worsening Covid infections that surged to a record high in November," the Wall Street Journal noted. "Trade data released before the Covid easing measures were announced on Wednesday showed Chinese exports fell at the steepest pace in more than two years in November, adding to weakening factory activity and a sluggish recovery in the property sector."
While Xi's regime scales back Covid restrictions, it has no intention of letting up on pro-democracy protesters, or anti-CCP radicals as the party dubs them.
Communist authorities in Beijing are reportedly preparing security forces to “resolutely crack down” on protests, with a heavier focus on the protesters who highlight the lack of freedom in the country, Geostrategy-Direct.com reported in its Dec. 6 edition.
The warning was delivered during a recent meeting of the Political and Legal Affairs Committee by newly appointed chief Chen Wenqing, a former Chinese intelligence officer.
CCP officials signaled the coming crackdown in a statement at the Political and Legal Affairs Committee meeting.
“We must resolutely crack down on infiltration and sabotage activities by hostile forces in accordance with the law, resolutely crack down on illegal and criminal acts that disrupt social order and effectively maintain overall social stability,” the committee said in a statement indirectly referring to recent mass protests. The statement also called for bolstering the “combat spirit” of authorities.
Related: Former intelligence official to lead Xi’s crackdown, focusing on anti-CCP radicals, December 6, 2022
The official tune out of Beijing on zero-Covid began to change after signs of economic and supply-chain disruptions again emerged and protests erupted in dozens of major cities, analysts say.
"Covid-related disruptions at the world’s biggest iPhone assembly plant led Apple Inc. to question whether it can still rely on China as its biggest manufacturing base," the Journal noted.
The number of areas designated “high risk” across the country jumped to 42,000 last week from around 32,000, according to data compiled by Beijing Daily. More than two million infected people and their close contacts remain in quarantine.
The new rules bar officials from arbitrarily locking down neighborhoods and from shutting businesses — but the apartments or buildings where infections are found will continue to be placed under lockdown. Covid patients with mild or no symptoms and their close contacts will be allowed to isolate at home instead of being shipped to government quarantine facilities.
Most requirements for virus testing and the scanning of health QR codes when entering premises will be scrapped, except for places deemed vulnerable such as nursing homes, nurseries or schools. Domestic travelers will no longer need to present a negative virus test or have their health codes checked when arriving in another province.
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