Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said on Sunday that she plans to review Covid-19 restrictions next Monday, a few days after acknowledging that many people in the financial center are “losing patience” with the policies. coronavirus containment sites.
The Chinese-ruled city has some of the strictest Covid-19 rules in the world, with a ban on flights from nine countries, including Australia and the United Kingdom, and a hotel quarantine of up to two weeks for those arriving.
The city also imposed a ban on gatherings of more than two people, while most public places are closed, including beaches and playgrounds. Masks are mandatory and there are no face-to-face classes in schools.
On Sunday, the government reported 14,149 new cases of Covid-19, down from 16,597 the day before and more than 20,000 on Friday.
The coronavirus outbreak has hit nursing homes hard and brought many parts of the city to a standstill.
In recent weeks, the streets in the heart of Hong Kong’s financial hub have been eerily quiet, restaurants and bars have been closed or empty, and supermarket shelves have been empty as people stocked up on groceries amid fears of a city-wide lockdown.
Many businesses across the city have been forced to close, including gyms, restaurants and bars, while others say they are living by appointment to close and need immediate relief from restrictions to survive.
Hong Kong has seen around 50,000 people leave so far this month, compared with more than 71,000 who left in February and nearly 17,000 in December before the fifth wave.
While Hong Kong is officially clinging to a “zero Covid” strategy aimed at containing all outbreaks, recent actions and policy adjustments suggest reality calls for softer initiatives, with most major global cities learning to live with the virus.
Official policy mirrors that of mainland China, which also faces a major challenge as the recent increase in cases restricts the movement of millions of people and affects some of the country’s industrial hubs.
Source: CNN Brasil
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