Omicron outbreak in China, lockdown frustrates residents

China on Wednesday reported more than 8600 new domestically transmitted COVID-19 cases, again reigniting the debate on finding an exit path from its stringent “Zero-COVID” policy which is frustrating millions in lockdown and putting severe strain on the economy. Tightened restrictions and targeted lockdowns have led many experts and residents to question the sustainability of such an approach as most parts of the world have started living with the virus after two years of pandemic which began in the Chinese city of Wuhan.
According to state media reports, since March 1, China has recorded more than 70,000 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases, mostly caused by the highly contagious Omicron and its sub-variant, with 28 provincial-level regions affected. Epidemiologists said that such a rapid increase in cases in this short timeframe indicates the difficulty of quashing this wave quickly and returning the country to a state of zero-COVID as has been the case with previous waves, it said. However, Chinese epidemiologists see a silver lining in the fact that most cases are asymptomatic with few severe cases and only two deaths in more than a year, providing an opportunity for China to explore ways for an exit of the pandemic.
They believe the experience accumulated during this outbreak will pave the way for China's future exit from the ongoing COVID management policy, although there are still gaps to be plugged in the country's response before further easing of current restrictions. The containment effort has come at a huge cost, stopping transport services and sometimes confining more than 10 million people to their homes has disrupted economic activity. Most foreigners are also still banned from entering China, and returning Chinese can face up to 28 days in a quarantined hotel. Despite that, China is not ready to get out of the “overall strategy” of zero-Covid amid debates on a possible exit strategy sprouting and getting crushed.