20220426_A grim tale of two cities

Extreme lockdown measures may have prevented Omicron outbreaks from exploding exponentially越來越快的 in Shanghai - but it is also apparent 清晰可見的that these measures have only been able to flatten the number of new cases at a relatively high level.

This economic powerhouse of the mainland has still recorded around 20,000 cases - symptomatic and asymptomatic - every day despite the extraordinary measures.

In Hong Kong - where social distancing was tightened but the city was not frozen - the number of new cases has fallen steeply after reaching the peak, allowing social distancing to ease and economic activities to resume steadily but slowly.

Although I was critical of the SAR's government experts over their advice not to prioritize the elderly for vaccination when the Covid pandemic started, I could not agree more this time with government expert Ivan Hung Fan-ngai.

Hung said the administration may act more quickly to relax social distancing after more than four million people here were believed to have contracted the virus to allow herd immunity to kick in to preempt a rebound in cases after the Easter holidays.

Hopefully, Hung's optimistic remarks can inspire greater confidence in the SAR.

Shanghai has been placed under extreme lockdowns for quite awhile. Has the goal of zero cases been achieved there, even on the so-called community levels?

There continue to be so many new cases each day that it is simply not viable to round up and transport an entire neighborhood to designated areas in the outskirts for quarantine.

In place of this, green fences have been put up to partition local neighborhoods into smaller squares for easier control, with a view to achieving the zero-case target.

At best, it may be called "home isolation, the Shanghai way."

At worst, these squares may become fire traps as residents are not allowed to leave. At least one fire was reported to have broken out in a building after it was fenced.

After Shanghai, Beijing has emerged as the latest major city to face the threat after a handful of cases were found in the capital's Chaoyang district.

There are no fences, but Beijing residents have decided not to take any chances. Many scrambled to stock up on food and other daily necessities to prepare for the worst, not wanting to repeat the experience of their Shanghai counterparts.

The two cities are home to the country's largest middle class and the fearsome lockdowns have dealt many such families in Shanghai a severe blow.

Probably the most expensive city in which to live, Shanghainese pay a small fortune each month for housing, cars and children's education.

The de-facto freezing of the city has already taken a toll on its economy. Although it was able to maintain stable economic performance in January and February, this was followed by a decline in March amid local reports of forced possession of homes after owners failed to repay mortgage loans and small businesses shutting down.

Some are luckier, suffering pay cuts but not losing their jobs.

Beijing is reportedly giving consideration to diversifying Shanghai's economic functions to other cities.

If true, this will be easier said than done.