OPINION: The policy switch was unavoidable and is good news, but it could come at a cost if omicron sweeps through the elderly population in particular and the death toll mounts.
With many of China’s residents and its economy at breaking point, President Xi Jinping’s government has reacted swiftly. Some experts warn,A 10-point plan released by China’s National Health Commission on Wednesday formalised signals from Beijing that it was finally prepared to wind back the mass testing, city-wide lockdowns and excessive quarantine rules that had become part of everyday life for the past three years.
This is a belated but rational approach to a virus the rest of the world has been learning to live with for more than a year. For many, the easing comes six months too late. By waiting, China will argue it has saved millions of lives as it now only has to contend with less deadly omicron subvariants rather than previous strains such as delta.and the damage to the economy could have been avoided if China had taken more decisive action earlier.
as the curbs are eased. The true death toll in coming weeks as the country reopens will likely never be made public.China’s biggest weakness, which it is now trying to address, is its low elderly vaccination rate. Whether Chinese students or tourists return to Australia in the numbers seen before the pandemic is less clear.Mr Xi’s backflip on a signature policy that allowed him to brag that China had done a better job than Western democracies in protecting its people, will not be his undoing. His unprecedented grip on power, reinforced when he was appointed leader for a third term in October, and ability of the Chinese propaganda apparatus to spin a story any way it wants, ensures his survival.
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