The glittering images of Hong Kong and Shanghai have long been associated with wealth and glamour.
In recent weeks, however, they have become synonymous with a much grimmer reality, as authorities in both international financial centers struggle to contain the Omicron outbreaks.
Severe measures against Covid-19 have severely restricted the lives of residents of both cities, with Shanghai entering its third week of government-mandated confinement and Hong Kong reeling from its third year of quarantine and travel restrictions.
As China’s gateway to the West, the closing of borders and the suspension of air routes have left the two cities isolated from much of the world, even as other centers have opened.
On Tuesday, only one flight arrived in Hong Kong from outside the Asia-Pacific region – a stark contrast to the pre-pandemic era, when the city’s airport was one of the busiest in the world, with 1,100 flights. passengers and cargo arriving and departing to 200 international destinations.
Now, most traffic is outbound, taking residents fleeing Hong Kong to more favorable areas with fewer restrictions. In February and March, more than 180,000 people left the city, while only about 39,000 entered, according to immigration data.
Shanghai, like Hong Kong, is home to a large number of foreigners, but fears are growing that this too could soon change.
Jörg Wuttke, president of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China, estimates that the country has lost around 50% of European expats since the start of the pandemic and warns that there could be another exodus of families in the coming months when the school year ends. “I wouldn’t be surprised if the other half (of those that remain) left the country,” he told reporters. CNN last week.
A recent report by the British Chamber of Commerce in China seems to agree with that estimate, noting that China’s international schools could lose at least 40% of teachers before the next school year, which could drive more families to relocate.
These departures from the country are driven by China’s adherence to an uncompromising “Covid zero” policy that involves a combination of strict border quarantines, lockdowns and mass testing in a bid to eradicate infections.
However, these measures no longer seem to be enough in the face of the last wave of Omicron. Hong Kong recorded the highest per capita death rate in Asia and Oceania last month as cases surged and the virus spread through nursing homes.
Shanghai plunged into crisis soon afterwards, with all of its 25 million residents in mandatory lockdown at the end of March.
Many in Shanghai complain of not having access to food, essentials and even emergency medical care. Reports of healthcare workers forcing seniors into quarantine and workers killing a pet Corgi after its owner tested positive have incited an unusual public outcry against the government on Chinese social media.
“Shanghai is cornering us, they don’t treat us at all like a human being,” wrote one user on Weibo, the heavily censored Chinese platform similar to Twitter.
“I can not understand. How can it be that bad? What is happening to Shanghai?” says another comment from Weibo.
Prior to this wave, officials in Shanghai prided themselves on their little inconvenient approach to containing outbreaks and avoided mass testing, a practice carried out in other major Chinese cities.
Hong Kong has also been hailed as a “zero Covid” success story. Although it had already faced several outbreaks, its fatality rate remained low until a fifth wave arrived in February.
The risk of infection seemed so low that many residents – particularly the elderly – did not see vaccination as a priority, leaving much of the city vulnerable when Ômicron struck.
Now, as increasing numbers of residents try to leave, that sense of relative security and both cities’ position as international capitals of travel and commerce seem more distant than ever.
“We’ve gone more than a month without making any money from our business,” says Josh Vaughn, an American businessman in Shanghai who has an online brand of sunglasses. “I get stressed just thinking about it because I don’t know when this lockdown will end… I fear this could be the end of my company.”
Vaughn said that after contracting Covid-19 this month, he was treated in a hostile manner by his neighbors, who were reluctant to let him return to their building after he was discharged from the hospital – a similar experience to other expats who felt rejected. .
Wuttke, president of the European Union Chamber of Commerce, warned that the economic impact of Covid restrictions in China could lead some foreign companies to consider withdrawing their regional headquarters from greater China, jeopardizing the future of major shopping centers like Shanghai and Hong Kong. Kong in question as the rest of the world opens up.
Singapore, which for years competed with Hong Kong for the title of Asia’s top international business hub, was the first Asian country to declare an end to the “Zero Covid” policy and live with the virus last year.
Some in Hong Kong’s business sector are eyeing the Southeast Asian city-state, which lifted all quarantine requirements for vaccinated travelers in April.
Chinese officials acknowledged this precarious situation with a comment by Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam in late March: “I feel that people’s tolerance is running out, that some of our financial institutions are losing patience with this Hong Kong lockdown. , as the city is an international financial center.”
In an effort to boost Hong Kong’s sagging economy, Lam lifted some flight bans and eased quarantine requirements last month.
But it may be too late, especially as Chinese officials and state media bolster rhetoric praising China’s “zero Covid” policy, offering little hope that these international financial centers will open soon.
Gabriele, an Italian resident of Shanghai who asked to be identified only by his first name, tested positive in early April and has since been confined to his apartment for more than three weeks.
Describing the situation as a “nightmare”, Gabriele said that health professionals said they would retest him, but “never came back”, and attempts to contact local authorities came to nothing. “We feel powerless,” he says.
Now, he is thinking about returning to his country permanently, leaving behind a place he once loved. “The city has completely lost its luster. I don’t know if it will recover. It’s like a totally different city. It feels like we are going back in time instead of looking to the future.”
*Additional reporting by Akanksha Sharma and Michelle Toh of CNN
Source: CNN Brasil
I’m James Harper, a highly experienced and accomplished news writer for World Stock Market. I have been writing in the Politics section of the website for over five years, providing readers with up-to-date and insightful information about current events in politics. My work is widely read and respected by many industry professionals as well as laymen.
