Dozens of cities across China, including Wuhan where the coronavirus was first recorded, have
gone into lockdown – as the country pursues leader Xi Jinping’s zero-Covid policy.
More than 800,000 people in one district in Wuhan were told to stay at home until 30 October.
“We feel numb to it all. We feel more and more numb,” one local said.
The city of Zhengzhou, home to the world’s largest iPhone manufacturing plant, was also
affected.
It comes as China reported a third straight day of more than 1,000 cases.
Earlier this month Mr Xi signaled that there would be no easing up of the zero-Covid policy,
calling it a “people’s war to stop the spread of the virus”.
As of Oct 24, some 28 cities across the country were implementing some degree of lockdown
measures, analysts Nomura told news agency Reuters – with around 207 million people affected
in regions responsible for almost a quarter of China’s GDP, it added.
Across the country, around 200 lockdowns have been implemented in recent days – the majority
of this affecting community that has been marked as high or medium risk. Residents in different
areas are subject to different rules, depending on whether they are in a low, medium or high-risk
zone.
Wuhan reported up to 25 new infections a day this week, with more than 200 cases over the past
two weeks.
In Zhengzhou, a “small number of employees” from Foxconn – a major manufacturer for Apple –
have been “affected by the pandemic”, the manufacturer told the BBC, adding that quarantined
employees were being provided with “material supplies, psychological comfort and responsive
feedback”. It comes at a critical period for Apple – which is now making the new iPhone 14.
Earlier this week, in-person schooling and dining in at restaurants were suspended in the
southern Chinese hub of Guangzhou – which on Thursday reported 19 new virus cases, Some
neighbourhoods in the city also remain subject to various control measures.