Shanghai reports a second day of zero infections, while Beijing sees dozens of daily infections as China battles outbreaks
A security guard asks a tourist to provide a nucleic acid test result at the entrance to a hutong alley during the Labour Day holiday in Beijing, China,, on April 30 2022. Picture: REUTERS/YEW LUN TIAN
The outbreak in China's most populous city and the risk of a spread in Beijing are testing the government's zero-Covid-19 approach in a year when Xi Jinping is expected to secure an unprecedented third term as president. In the past week the city of 22-million has conducted mass testing in most of its 16 districts, suspended all entertainment venues, and banned restaurant dining.
Beijing's sprawling Universal Studios theme park closed on Sunday, while in the highly visited Badaling section of the Great Wall, visitors were told to show proof of negative Covid-19 test results before entering. Some residents have turned to social media to vent their frustration, some clanged pots and pans outside their windows, and others clashed with public health workers.
Six of its 16 districts attained zero-CovidC status, meaning three consecutive days with no new daily increases in infections, senior city government official Gu Honghui told a virtual news conference.