China has reportedly suspended or closed more than 1,000 social media accounts criticizing China’s policies on the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Sina Weibo social media platform said it had dealt with 12,854 violations, permanent bans on 1,120 accounts and attacks on experts, academics and medical workers.
The company said Thursday that it “will step up investigation and cleanup of illegal content of all kinds and continue to create a harmonious and friendly community environment for the majority of users.”
The Chinese Communist Party has imposed severe restrictions on free speech, and previous methods have sparked widespread protests in major cities.
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The Chinese Communist Party has relied on medical experts to justify its draconian mitigation efforts, but the country quickly moved to roll back restrictions, leading to a new surge.
China will no longer bring criminal charges against those accused of violating border quarantine rules, and those in custody will be released.
A man wearing a face mask buys Chinese New Year decorations at a pavement store in Beijing on Saturday, January 7, 2023.
(AP Photo/Andy Wong)
China Daily’s official website said the adjustments were made “with the aim of comprehensively considering the harm of behavior to society and adapting to the new situation of epidemic prevention and control.”
Cases and hospitalizations are on the rise, even though authorities expect Chinese New Year travel to double compared to the same period last year.
On Friday, China’s Ministry of Transport called for reducing travel and gatherings, especially those involving people at risk of serious illness.
Deputy Minister Xu Chengguang told reporters that people using public transport were also asked to wear masks and monitor their health closely.
China will lift the requirement that city school students must test negative for COVID-19 to enter campuses when classes resume on Feb. 13, plus arrivals from abroad from Sunday. plans to end mandatory quarantines for people who
People wearing masks walk a street in Beijing on Friday, January 6, 2023.
(AP Photo/Andy Wong)
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In a statement on Friday, the city’s education department said schools could move classes online in the event of a new outbreak, but must return to in-person classes as soon as possible.
Chinese health authorities publish daily numbers of new cases, severe cases and deaths. These figures include only officially confirmed cases and use a narrow definition of COVID-related deaths.
As the government ended compulsory testing and allowed people with mild symptoms to self-test and recover at home, officials said the government could no longer fully account for the state of the latest infection. says.
On Saturday, the National Health Commission reported 10,681 new domestic cases and three new deaths in the past 24 hours.
A medical worker examines an elderly patient as he arrives at the emergency hall of a hospital in Beijing, Saturday, January 7, 2023.
(AP Photo/Andy Wong)
This number is reportedly lower than estimates published by some local governments. The eastern province of Zhejiang said on Tuesday it was seeing about 1 million new cases a day.
The health board on Saturday rolled out rules to increase surveillance for virus mutations, including testing the city’s wastewater. It called for increased data collection from hospitals and local government health departments, as well as increased checks for “pneumonia of unknown origin.”
When variants emerge in outbreaks, they are discovered by viral gene sequencing.
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The World Health Organization has expressed concern about the lack of data from China, but China opposes testing requirements enacted by foreign governments, saying they are not science-based.
Its spokesman said the situation was under control and rejected accusations of a lack of preparations for reopening.
The United States requires travelers from China to have a negative test result within 48 hours of departure.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
