The Who, What, When, Why, and Where of the Topic
China is still subject to the severe coronavirus restrictions that other countries imposed at the beginning of the pandemic. In addition, the New Year’s holiday and the Olympics were only occasions to tighten them. China is the only country with a zero-tolerance policy for coronavirus. Despite the low incidence of the disease, the country’s leaders have not loosened quarantine measures. Since December, three cities with more than 20 million population have remained isolated, and several dozen more cities have incomplete lockdowns (Qin & Chang Chien, 2022). It is virtually impossible for foreigners to obtain a visa to China, and locals are prevented from traveling to regions where outbreaks of the virus have been reported. Only residents of remote areas and small villages remain unaffected by this policy of the authorities. The key problem is that China has no plans to abandon these measures, but their effectiveness against the much more contagious Omicron is debatable.
All Sides of the Issue and the Thesis
The primary position is that if restrictions are relaxed, it will result in hundreds of new coronavirus cases per day. This excerpt from a study by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention helps justify the imposition of such stringent measures. In addition, many Chinese experts believe that it will not be so easy for the authorities to lift the steps made even if they want to. Lifting the quarantine now may be perceived as an admission that the government’s strategy has not worked (McCarthy, 2022). However, there is also another view that the zero-tolerance policy poses risks to the global economy and should therefore be repealed. Moreover, analysts agree that the current strategy of the Chinese authorities will not be able to counter the Omicron fully (Bala, 2022). China needs to soften the measures taken against the epidemic. Leaving them in place would be ineffective for the health of the country’s residents, hinder the economy, and contribute to strengthening the authoritarian regime.
Opponents’ Arguments
The high proportion of older people who are severely affected by the coronavirus and the low effectiveness of Chinese-made vaccines are the reasons for the introduction of lockdown. In addition to objective reasons for pursuing a zero-tolerance policy for the virus, the Chinese authorities have other motives (Lemus Delgado, 2022). By showing how effectively the pandemic has been handled, the Chinese Communist Party will ensure its legitimacy (Lemus Delgado, 2022). The introduction of lockdowns helps the Chinese president’s economic reforms to increase control over the country’s business and cultural landscape.
Refuting the Opposition
The beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in China in late 2019 was the trigger for an unprecedented economic crisis in world history. A new wave of the omicron variant in China, which is more contagious than previous strains, is a great risk to the world economy (Power, 2022). The introduction or tightening of restrictive measures in most countries will again slow the global economic recovery (Power, 2022). In addition, states will be required to take steps to support people and businesses financially.
Instead of forcing people to be locked up, depriving them of the opportunity to communicate with other people, the Chinese authorities could more intensively develop the creation of more effective vaccines. Imports of proven Western vaccines could also have been intensified. This would help avoid concerns about the deteriorating health of the elderly, pregnant women, and kids. Moreover, as noted earlier, injections made in China are powerless against omicron.
The political regime now in place in China does not allow for pluralism of opinion with regard to the fight against the coronavirus. This leads to many human rights violations across the provinces (Wang, 2021). This is especially true in relation to surveillance of the population – cameras are used by the authorities to establish the route of an infected person. The justifiability of the measures introduced remains debatable; many people find the lockdown emotionally difficult (Wang, 2021). The system in China is tougher on people who resist self-isolation. If a person does not comply with quarantine, they can be visited, handcuffed, and taken to the hospital. The continuation of the zero-tolerance policy could lead to a strengthening of the authoritarian regime in the country.
The Solution
The way to solve the problem could be to increase the use of Western vaccines and reduce the severity of measures against those who are infected. These steps, of course, should not lead to the deaths of those who have fallen ill. However, one should not expect quick changes in this situation – this process will take some time. The result of introducing mass vaccination with Western vaccines will be the formation of collective immunity. The abolition of the zero-tolerance policy contributes to the reestablishment of supply chains and decreased trust in the authorities.
References
Bala, S. (2022). China’s zero-Covid strategy ‘won’t work’ against omicron, says U.S. epidemiologist.CNBC. Web.
Lemus Delgado, D (2022). COVID-19, the Chinese communist party, and the search for legitimacy in the international arena.Chinese Journal of Communication, 1, 1-13. Web.
McCarthy, S. (2022). China’s Covid controls risk sparking crisis for the country – and its leader Xi Jinping.CNN. Web.
Power, J. (2022). As ‘zero COVID’ bites, China’s leadership sounds alarm on economy.Aljazeera. Web.
Qin, A., & Chang Chien, A. (2022). China holds the line on ‘zero covid,’ but some wonder for how long.The New York Times. Web.
Wang, Y. (2021). China’s covid success story is also a human rights tragedy.Human Rights Watch. Web.