As I see it | China is under pressure on Ukraine and its Covid policy – not just from the West
- Lockdowns in Shenzhen and Shanghai caused a public outcry over rigid strategy
- Beijing is also facing a backlash at home over its response to Russia’s brutal war
Both are unpopular, to say the least – and rarely has Beijing’s handling of domestic and foreign policy headaches come under so much public scrutiny.
As the rest of the world reopens, Beijing has doubled down on its zero-Covid strategy. Despite some of the country’s top health experts saying the Omicron variant is highly infectious but much less deadly, up to 62 million people in China are estimated to be locked down, according to Bloomberg.
Chinese social media is heavily censored, yet the frustration can easily be found – from complaints about food shortages and disruptions to difficulties getting access to medical care.
Many have questioned the rationale behind locking down millions of people, which seems a disproportionate response given the severity of the outbreak.