One year after Wuhan, China is reconfiguring itself
Vegetable vendors outside the entrance to a residential complex that was locked following the emergence of new cases of Covid-19 in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province, China on January 19, 2021. via REUTERS - STRINGER
Text by: Stéphane Lagarde Follow
5 mins
With the approach of the Lunar New Year, and the great migrations of the Spring Festival holidays, the Chinese authorities are tightening health restrictions.
The discovery of epidemic foci in the north of the country, especially in Hebei province and in certain districts of Beijing, forced millions of Chinese to stay at home, like last winter in Hubei province, cradle of the pandemic.
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from our correspondent in Beijing,
The notes are still running in this music institute in northern Beijing, but as of this weekend, the piano is over, explains this Korean teacher:
“The lessons stop
.
We were informed that night.
Like all schools in Beijing, we have been asked to close.
"
No more singing, schools are closed.
School holidays started almost three weeks early.
This Lunar New Year 2021 was supposed to be the one to return to normal, it is actually nothing ordinary.
Starting with the residents of Hebei who have seen their lives change quickly after
the emergence of new cases of contamination
during a marriage.
The latter can forget the
chunjié
holidays
,
the traditional and family holiday of spring in China.
Since January 6, 11 million inhabitants of the capital of this province surrounding Beijing have been confined.
"
The lockdown of the city prevents me from working,
ensures
Li Dawei, 31 years old.
I cannot leave my home and for a self-employed person this means that I have no income during the period of isolation.
If it drags on it will be difficult, but with my friends, we remain optimistic for now.
Authorities are believed to quickly bring the outbreak under control.
"
Race against time
It is true that the speed of the reaction in Hebei contrasts with the start of the epidemic in Wuhan a year ago.
In a few days, nursing staff from the coast came to reinforce the teams responsible for testing the populations;
tens of thousands of villagers in the countryside have been transported to temporary quarantine centers;
access points to the Chinese capital are hermetically filtered.
Near Beijing's fifth ring road, small mountains of parcels spread out at the feet of the scooters.
The packages take a long time to arrive, entrust the delivery men in red and white.
“
The service takes longer because the warehouses are located in the infected areas of Daxing and Shunyi,”
explains one of them
.
All these packages that you see there are late.
Packages shipped from outside of Beijing take longer.
At least two or three days from Hebei.
This is how the traffic is blocked.
"
Highways closed, trains that remain in stations and confined doors sealed by health authorities: the videos on the Sina Weibo network from the start of 2021 definitely have an air of déjà vu, de déjà vu.
China has experience with clusters.
In Shijiazhuang, there was no panic, no rush to supermarkets, says Li Dawei.
Even if confinement, in real life, we never really get used to.
“Here it's like
in Wuhan last year
,”
says the 30-something
.
The measurements are the same, but people are less worried.
The blockade of the city was a sudden decision, we are not all prepared.
Food supplies are fine.
We can have a delivery and we can buy food products inside the residences.
For the pharmacy, however, it is more complicated.
Me for example, I have a toothache.
I need an anti-inflammatory.
But since it's classified as a cold medicine, I can't get it.
This would have required that I obtain a prescription before the start of confinement.
"
Dissuade travelers
Take patience and wait.
Like many Hebei residents, a large chunk of residents in the Chinese capital will be staying at home for the Lunar New Year.
The authorities strongly recommend it, and for those who would still like to leave, a negative test before departure for the province is required to which are added 14 days of quarantine on arrival in the family province.
The number of new cases remains low in China compared to the epidemic in the West, but this winter Covid outbreak is the strongest recorded in the country since Wuhan.
Pekingese know music.
Many are hoping for a lifting of travel restrictions after the Chinese parliament meets in March.
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