Despite the current corona wave in his country, Chinese head of state Xi Jinping (69) spoke of optimism about the fight against the pandemic in his New Year’s speech. “The light of hope is right in front of us,” Xi said in the televised address on Saturday. The prevention and control measures are entering a “new phase”, “everyone is working resolutely” to fight the virus, he stressed.
China is currently experiencing the highest increase in corona infections in the world. Hospitals and crematoria are overcrowded in many places and many pharmacies no longer have fever reducers. In early December, in a radical U-turn, Beijing backed away from its strict zero-Covid policy, which had sparked growing popular outrage. Since then, the corona restrictions have been relaxed considerably.
The Chinese authorities announced more than 7,000 new cases of infection and one new corona death on Saturday. However, the actual numbers are probably considerably higher.
Official trick to cover up the number of deaths
The authorities have recently changed the criteria for registering corona deaths. Accordingly, only those who died directly from respiratory failure due to the virus are counted as corona deaths. Previously, as in other countries around the world, all people who died from a disease during a corona infection were counted as corona deaths.
The World Health Organization (WHO) called for more transparency about the increase in corona cases during a meeting with Chinese officials on Friday. The WHO has “again requested the regular sharing of specific data in real time on the epidemiological situation,” the organization said.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin, 51, rejected allegations that his country was not providing enough data. “Since the outbreak of the epidemic, China has shared relevant information and data with the international community, including the WHO, in an open and transparent manner,” he said.
Several countries have now announced or introduced a corona test requirement for travelers from China. Most recently, the EU countries France and Spain, but also Great Britain, Israel and South Korea announced that travelers from China will have to show a negative corona test in the future.
For example, in France from January 5, the requirement applies that travelers from China must submit a negative test before departure. Germany, on the other hand, continues to waive such an inspection obligation. (AFP)