Sunday – Shaaban 19, 1444 AH – March 12, 2023 AD
Beijing: «Middle East»
An announcement by a Chinese city that it was considering imposing lockdown restrictions in the event of a flu outbreak sparked a lot of anger on social media.
According to the US “CNN”, the city of Xi’an, a tourist hotspot in Shaanxi Province, revealed an emergency response plan this week, which will enable it to close schools, businesses and “other crowded places” in the event of a large outbreak of the influenza epidemic.
That sparked a mixture of concern and anger on social media in China among many users who said the plan sounded uncomfortably similar to some of China’s toughest measures during the pandemic that were only recently abandoned.
And one of the users wrote on the Chinese “Weibo” website, which is similar to “Twitter”: “Give the vaccine to citizens instead of creating a sense of panic among them.” Another asked: “How can people not panic after the city of Xi’an announced that it may suspend work and commercial activities without issuing instructions.” Is it clear at the national level to classify the disease?
Although coronavirus cases are declining in China, there is a rise in influenza cases across the country. Some pharmacies are struggling to meet demand for flu treatments.
However, this proposed plan will not necessarily be used in Xi’an, but it is only a rough picture of how the city of about 13 million people will respond to any serious future outbreak of influenza.
China imposed strict measures to contain the Corona virus, which extended for months in some cities, and it was one of the last countries in the world to end procedures such as mass tests and compulsory quarantine for those coming from outside the country, which negatively affected its economy.