Protests against corona measures in China How monkeys are enslaved for coconut milk in Thailand

Angry migrant workers have broken down numerous barricades during violent protests against strict corona measures in the southern Chinese metropolis of Guangzhou.

The incidents took place in the Haizhu district, home to one of China’s largest fabric markets. Videos posted on social media show hundreds of angry people knocking down red barricades around houses and bars Monday night.

According to a report from the business magazine “Caixin”, the background to the riots was apparently the irritation of textile workers returned from quarantine but were not allowed to enter their rented apartments due to the major Covid 19 outbreak in the city of 19 million. Guangzhou had more than 5,000 new infections on Monday, while more than 17,000 cases were reported nationwide — more than in six months.

“After a while, people gathered, violently beat the metal fences and destroyed the guard post,” the Hong Kong newspaper South China Morning Post quoted an eyewitness named Marissa as saying. Some residents expressed support for the protesters from their homes. However, the police quickly brought the situation under control.

The newspaper reported that there were incidents in other places in the neighborhood as well. The textile industry in Haizhu employs hundreds of thousands of migrant workers from other provinces. In Guangzhou, authorities have been trying to contain the outbreak for weeks with neighborhood curfews and mass testing.

As the rest of the world tries to live with the virus, China continues to pursue a strict zero-Covid strategy of lockdowns, mass testing every day, strict controls, contact tracing and forced quarantine. Nevertheless, the number of new infections has risen sharply, especially in recent weeks, while the easily contagious omicron variants are spreading quickly. The dissatisfaction of the population about the ongoing strict measures is also growing.

(yam/sda/dpa)