(Bloomberg) — Residents of a Shanghai area that hosts research centers for major tech firms fought with police over plans to open quarantine facilities near them, underscoring burgeoning anger over the Chinese government’s handling of its worst Covid outbreak since Wuhan in early 2020.
People living at the Nashi community in the financial hub’s east tried to stop workers in hazmat suits from erecting fencing around several buildings that have units similar to serviced apartments, according to several people who spoke to Bloomberg News on condition they not be identified out of fear they may get in trouble with authorities.
Now-censored clips showed scores of police dragging away protesters worried that they could catch the virus from people who moved into the buildings. Officers can be seen trying to push angry people back, some of whom are screaming and shouting: “Police are beating us.”
Zhangjiang Group, the state-owned company that manages the Nashi community, said in a statement that “relevant departments” handled the matter, an apparent reference to the police. The company added that it was acting on government orders to carry out Covid-19 control work, and that residents were compensated for moving. Police at the local station didn’t answer a phone call seeking comment.
Xi Moves to Stop Shanghai Covid Rage From Sweeping Across China
Confrontations between large groups of people and police are rare in China, illustrating the frustration felt by many in Shanghai, a cosmopolitan city of some 25 million people that’s been locked down for nearly three weeks. Anger has mounted over a lack of food, medical supplies, information on when their ordeal will end and even freedom to step outside. Some families have been awoken late at night by health workers in hazmat suits — nicknamed the “big white” in China — shouting over loudspeakers that they must assemble outside for yet another Covid test.
Several instances of public indignation have appeared on the Asian nation’s social media platforms, only to be blocked by authorities worried that unrest could spread. Videos of the fighting at the Nashi community have disappeared from the Twitter-like Weibo service, and a search using the hashtag of the neighborhood’s name yields no results, with Weibo citing the need to “comply with relevant laws and regulations.”
Shanghai is the epicenter of an outbreak of the highly contagious omicron variant in China, straining the government’s ability to enforce President Xi Jinping’s demand that cities be totally free of the virus, a strategy known as Covid Zero. The eastern metropolis, home to China’s biggest stock market and major financial institutions, saw a record of more than 27,700 new cases Wednesday, though the figure dipped to about 23,000 for Thursday. The vast majority of the cases are mild or asymptomatic, raising questions among many in the public about the need for the draconian lockdown.
Shanghai has been scrambling to build isolation facilities and makeshift hospitals for hundreds of thousands of people. The city has converted many of its exhibition halls, indoor stadiums and schools into quarantine centers. Upscale hotels have been told to hand over rooms.
Surging case numbers forced authorities to look for even more sites. Officials took over five buildings in the Nashi neighborhood in mid-March, though residents said there was little complaint because the towers were out of the way. Officials then went back to the compound Tuesday, telling residents they would take over another nine buildings, and tenants had to be out that day.
The Nashi complex caters to people working at Zhangjiang Science City, which hosts Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. and multinationals including Microsoft Corp.
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