Residents have cheered the easing of COVID-19 restrictions in Shanghai, but are wary that the virus, and the rules that come with it, could return.
Women throw their hats in the air to celebrate the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, in Shanghai, China, 1 June 2022.Shanghai slowly whirred back to life Wednesday as a range of COVID-19 restrictions were eased after a two-month lockdown that confined residents to their homes and battered the Chinese economy.
The 35-year-old Shanghai resident said she went out at midnight when the restrictions eased and saw groups gathered in the street drinking beers, some sitting together on blankets laid out on the pavements.On Wednesday morning, commuters trickled into subway stations and office buildings, scanning QR codes that certify they are virus-free.
Shopping centres, convenience stores, pharmacies and beauty salons will be allowed to operate at 75 per cent capacity, while parks and other scenic spots will gradually reopen, she added. More than half a million still remained under restrictions as of Wednesday, according to the authorities.The stringent curbs in Shanghai - home to the busiest container port in the world - had hammered the economy, starving businesses and snarling supply chains in China and abroad.The city government has warned that the situation is still not normal, and businesses said there were many uncertainties.
China has persisted with a zero-COVID strategy, which involves rapid lockdowns, mass testing and long quarantines to try and eliminate infections. A mother and child walk on the Bund, after the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, in Shanghai, China on 1 June 2022."We should have been free to begin with, so don't expect me to be deeply grateful now they've given it back to us," she told AFP.
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