13M Chinese Finally Freed After 1-Month Lockdown In Xi’an As New Outbreak Detected In Shanghai

Finally, after a month of living with a brutal, Wuhan-style lockdown, the 13M residents of Xi’an, the provincial capital of Shanxxi, are finally free to go about their business. The CCP announced over the weekend that it would end the lockdown after  a month, having officially triumphed over the virus yet again (although other outbreaks are vexing authorities in Beijing and elsewhere).

On Monday, meanwhile, health authorities confirmed the first new confirmed case of COVID in Shanghai since the start of the latest round of outbreaks. While it’s only one case for now (at least, according to what the CCP is willing to tell the public), COVID cases follow the cockroach theory: where there’s one, there are more.

According to official sources, a worker at a cargo terminal in Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport tested positive for COVID. While the case has been categorized as mild, Shanghai authorities have upgraded the risk level on a residential compound in the Fengxian district, leaving its residents to face tighter restrictions and mandatory testing. Authorities in Shanghai are also “encouraging” residents to remain in the city during the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday.

China also reported four cases of COVID among incoming travelers for the Winter Olympics (which starts Feb. 4). One infection involved an individual identified as an “athlete” and three identified as “stakeholders” by the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympics, in a statement.

As authorities in Beijing continue to tighten restrictions ahead of the start of the Winter Games, the Chinese government has started to use its panopticon of surveillance to discreetly track people who buy cough medicine or anything else that might be used to alleviate the symptoms of COVID, according to Bloomberg.

Beijing residents who purchase antipyretics, antivirals and drugs that target coughs and sore throats will get an alert on the mobile app China uses for contact tracing and which is frequently checked to allow entry to public venues. The buyer will then need to take a Covid test within 72 hours or face movement restrictions, the Beijing Municipal Health Commission said on Sunday.

With the US and some of its western allies boycotting the Olympics, many diplomats simply don’t need to worry about traveling to Beijing this year. But those who are face some pretty stiff anti-COVID restrictions. Some might be forced to quarantine for a total of 21 days if they are ever deemed to be “close contacts” of anybody found to be positive.

That’s bad news for any diplomat who doesn’t want to risk being detained in a Chinese quarantine facility just so they can attend the Winter Olympics.

Already, Chinese authorities have discovered 78 cases among travelers associated with the Games since Jan. 4. So, in the hopes of avoiding further embarrassment, the CCP has decided to lower the testing threshold for what’s considered a positive case. Perhaps they have seen our reporting on the COVID “casedemic” and how to address it.