Wuhan is under lockdown again

The Chinese city of Wuhan, which many regards as the starting point of the Covid-19 outbreak two and half years ago, is now in quarantine again.

The lockdown has not affected the entire city, though. It's been enforced only in the Jiangxia district, which represents one million out of the 11 million residents that live in Wuhan.

Four asymptomatic cases, reported on July 26, made the local authorities to apply these measures.

According to the BBC, the Chinese government declared the quarantine in the entire district in less than 24 hours.

The plan, so far, has been to keep the Jianxia district isolated for at least three days starting out on July 27.

The residents of this district have been ordered to stay at home and only go out if necessary.

Public transportation and entertainment venues have also shut down for three days, a stark contrast for a city that was just getting back on its feet after long months of suffering under the pandemic.

Obviously, despite the quick reaction, the 10 million remaining residents of Wuhan are suspicious of how the situation in the Jiangxia district has been managed. Recent experience speaks for itself.

So far, this is another example of China's Zero Covid Policy, where even the slightest outbreak of Covid-19 are met with harsh restrictions.

Since the beginning of the year, China has been in a constant fight against outbreaks of the Omicron variant. This has led to keeping Shanghai's 26 million inhabitants under lockdown for two months, during the spring of 2022.

This is the first time, ever since Xi Jinping came into power, that the Chinese people have shown their discontent with restrictive policies, such as the ones adopted to fight off Covid-19.

The harsh economic conditions that people in China are facing, along with discontent and outrage over the new lockdown measures, have created tension between the government and the populace.

Interestingly, according to official data, the balance left by the pandemic in China since it began is far from alarming.

Taking into account that China has a population of over 1,400 million inhabitants, the fact that Covid-19 cases have been just under 230,000 seems almost unbelievable.

The Chinese authorities also claim that the death toll is just over 5,200 people. Like the Jiangxia District, information seems to be also closed off.

Regardless of whether the data is or is not, the only thing left is to trust that the preventive measures in Wuhan are enough to limit the impact of this new outbreak. Or the threat of an outbreak.