The Canton Fair Complex, possibly the largest convention center in the world, is hosting the China International Beauty Expo (CIBE) from 10 to 12 March 2022. On the second day, Friday 11 March, this happened, according to social media:
It seems that the Canton Fair Complex was definitely not the place you’d want to be at last Friday, as everyone got stuck there and needed to get tested after one or more visitors were suspected of having COVID (red qr code).
Some of the panic after news started going around that a potentially infected person was among the fair’s visitors.
Chinese media reported that the lockdown started at 1pm on 11 March, because one person with COVID from other province came here. After some chaos, around 4pm, 49,000 people started to get PCR tests, all negative. But the government identified 1292 people as “VIP” and they have to go through three more tests within 7 days.
The picture below showed the crowd stuck in the complex which was put under lockdown:
Shenzhen is not in lockdown, but in a slow mode, for 7 days: you can still leave or come to Shenzhen via airplane, train and highway. You can also drive to work or call a taxi. But all public transport are stopped.
Everyone has to get 3 PCR consecutives tests, and all companies/institutions/government offices stop their business or work from home.
All residential area are in lockdown, no one can leave unless there is an emergency and you need to show your PCR test results.
On Weibo, Shenzhen people are outraged:
(rough translation): the whole city of Shenzhen is on pause, this is really outrageous. Hongkong is just next door and why can it have privilege? There is no lockdown and no PCR test for everyone, and some of them even snuggled into Mainland. Did they pay tax? On what ground they are using our tax money to feed the bugs (a derogatory term Mainlanders use to refer to Hongkong people since Occupy Central movement). The land of Hongkong belongs to China, but the people living there may not be our brothers. #ShenZhen requires a stop of all unnecessary movements#.
The lockdown in Shenzhen could influence global market, argued by the American economist Noah Smith:
(excerpt): So anyway, back to inflation. China’s COVID lockdowns will probably decrease their demand for oil, which could mitigate the oil price shock from the Russia sanctions. That’s good. But it will also cause additional supply chain problems. Broken supply chains can make the economy less robust to inflationary pressures (such as an oil shock), and if severe enough, they can even cause inflation themselves by destroying economic activity outright.
For sure, Foxconn and Unimicron suspended production at factories in Shenzhen, China, because of the lockdown. Expect some delays in manufacturing electronics!
According to social media, a city district made students from kindergartens, primary schools and middle schools testing all together with their parents. One person was tested positive. So tens of thousands of people there are considered close contact and have to be quarantined.
Meanwhile, some hospital workers have been infected and there are scenes of fighting in the hospital.
Many residential areas are in lockdown. Residents are outraged, and protesting, as shows on this video. The man was shouting, “No one cares about us, sick or not, we are all together. We have children, pregnant women, old people. This is your so-called targeted lockdown. “
Other social media posts told stories of pet cats left in the apartment when the owner was tested positive and sent to be quarantined. Three cats were left home. Two of them were in a cage. The COVID management team went in, opened the cage and told the owner that the cats ran away. The other cat jumped from the window and died.
Meanwhile, other lesser known cities are in “stay where you are” mode, as the government announcement puts it.
We introduced Dr. Leta Hong Fincher in our newsletter 33, who wrote a book on leftover women in China. In this interview, “The state of Chinese feminism in 2022 with Leta Hong Fincher”, she commented on the social reaction to the chained woman that we have covered in this newsletter many times, and many other issues. If you have time, it is worth reading.