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China’s summer vacation hotspot is struggling to contain the Covid-19 outbreak, with the country witnessing its worst week of infections since mid-May. Daily coronavirus cases fell to 2,678 on Thursday from 3,424 a day earlier, but the country still reported more than 18,000 in the past seven days as worrying outbreaks in Hainan, Tibet and Xinjiang stranded thousands of tourists a local case of COVID-19. Hainan reported 1,499 cases on Wednesday, with more than 100,000 of the 150,000 tourists still stranded by the island’s sudden lockdown, China News reported.
China’s zero-virus policy has forced Xinjiang and Tibet to impose lockdowns, causing widespread unrest in economically underdeveloped regions.
After the initial restrictions were imposed on August 8, the lockdown in the Tibetan capital Lhasa was extended until August 18. The Ngari region of Tibet has also been blocked since August 11, causing traffic disruptions between Shigatse, Lhasa and Ngari regions. Famous tourist attractions across Tibet are also closed to the public.
In an effort to contain the virus, Chinese authorities have been imposing a blockade using widespread surveillance measures previously used to quell dissent, according to Tibet News. For years, China has used surveillance to target Tibetan Buddhists and Uighur Muslims. The measures have helped authorities contain any publicly expressed anger seen in Shanghai earlier this year.
While Chinese President Xi Jinping’s strict zero-coronavirus policy has been welcomed by the government, the lockdown sparked protests and a subsequent crackdown on protesters as restrictions severely impacted residents’ trade and commerce.
Since January 2022, there have been about 430 civilian demonstrations in major population centers in China. The main trigger for the protests was the imposition of Covid-19 lockdowns in high-density areas, resulting in delayed wage payments, scarcity of daily necessities and a marked apathy among the population. local government.
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