Health officials on Sunday reported 438 confirmed cases in the past 24 hours, along with 7,788 asymptomatic cases. Both figures were slightly higher than the previous day. Although small by the standards of some countries, the daily incidence rates are among the highest since the virus was first detected in the central city of Wuhan in late 2019. Shanghai, with a population of 26 million, launched a two-stage lockdown last week, with residents of eastern Pudong being forced to flee their homes on Friday as neighbors in western Puxi spent their four-day period isolation. Despite this reassurance, millions in Pudong are still confined to their homes amid complaints about food deliveries and the availability of medicines and health services. Alerts issued to residents said they had to check daily for Covid-19 and take precautions, including using a mask at home and avoiding contact with family members – measures that have not been widely enforced since the early days of the pandemic. A city official last week apologized in response to complaints about the government handling the lockdown, and a vice president made sweeping demands for improvements during a tour of Shanghai on Saturday. Sun Chunlan, a member of the ruling Communist Party’s Politburo, called for “decisive and swift action to curb the spread of COVID-19 in Shanghai as soon as possible,” the official Xinhua news agency reported. However, the Sun stressed the “unwavering adherence” to China’s hard-core “zero Covid” approach, imposing a lockdown, forced isolation of all suspected cases and mass trials, even while acknowledging its social and economic tax. “It’s a daunting task and a huge challenge to combat the variation of the micron while maintaining the normal operation of the basic functions in a large city,” said the Sun. He called for the preservation of key industries and institutions and the operation of supply and industrial chains in the commercial hub, while ensuring “the basic living conditions of people and normal medical needs”. State media reports say Chinese President Xi Jinping is stepping up the tough approach, while seeking to avoid further damage to the dangerous economy and ensure overall stability ahead of the party’s main congress expected next year.
