After 20 days of isolation, Ms. Rui was finally able to step outside.

But Shanghai remains a confined city that looks like a ghost town.

The Chinese economic capital is facing the worst outbreak of Covid-19 recorded in the country since the start of the pandemic.

More than 17,000 new positive cases of coronavirus were still announced there on Friday – a figure however in decline.

Placed under total confinement since the beginning of April, the 25 million inhabitants of Shanghai can, occasionally and only for some of them, go out for a few hours to taste a little wind of freedom.

But Ms. Rui's short stroll through the streets of the city had a surreal side, between deserted streets, sometimes barricaded shop windows and even a hairdressing salon set up... In an empty swimming pool.

Quarantine centers

Near her home, a few convenience stores have reopened, but are blocking their entrances with piles of shopping baskets, forcing customers to “Shout their order from the sidewalk”, explains this communication officer in an online sales company.

“The period that has just passed was really difficult for everyone”, she underlines about the past three weeks.

Because in addition to confinement, the inhabitants of Shanghai, if they test positive, are sent to quarantine centers with random comfort, which each house hundreds or even thousands of people in promiscuity.

Crumbs of freedom

But with the number of new daily cases falling, the town hall is beginning to allow some residents to leave their homes and factories to resume activity.

Municipal authorities have thus published a list of areas where confinements have been relaxed.

In the past two weeks, 12 million people have been informed that they can now go down the stairs of their building, or even go out into the street – depending on the level of risk in their neighborhood in relation to Covid-19.

But the enthusiasm aroused by this newfound freedom was quickly tempered.

" That's not bad "

Because in practice, a tangle of restrictions continues to limit movement and many areas of the city risk returning to strict confinement.

Videos posted by Shanghainese who have been able to leave their homes in recent days show tree-lined avenues virtually deserted.

Landscapes of tranquility occasionally disturbed by a delivery man on a scooter or an agent in a full protective suit.

“I can't leave my neighborhood, but it's not bad enough,” wrote a user of the social network Xiaohongshu.

Changing zones and rules

Police officers placed at intersections, however, check that people outside come from a low-risk neighborhood.

The situation varies from district to district.

In some areas, despite the town hall's assurance that they are free to move around, residents remain limited to a single daily walk.

Others are still confined to their apartments despite living in low-risk areas.

For Dan, an American who lives in the Jing'an district, this lack of clarity is "really infuriating".

Authorities “publish these lists [of areas where lockdowns are relaxed] so they can say things are getting better.

But while restricting and contradicting the policy that they themselves put in place, ”he complains.

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