As dozens of Chinese towns remain under heavy lockdown, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus calls for a revision in approach.
Xi has put his personal stamp on China’s zero-Covid strategy, with state media often reporting that he has “personally commanded and made arrangements” for the country’s fight against the pandemic.
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO’s director general, said during a press conference on Tuesday that his organisation does not believe China’s Covid policy is “sustainable” given the virus’s behaviour.
“We have discussed about this issue with Chinese experts and we indicated that the approach will not be sustainable … I think a shift would be very important,” he said.
Mike Ryan, the WHO’s emergencies director, added that the impact of a “zero Covid” policy on human rights needed to be taken into consideration alongside its economic effect.
“We need to balance the control measures against the impact on society, the impact they have on the economy, and that’s not always an easy calibration,” he said.
Shanghai officials will further limit access to food and hospitals in some areas of the city over the next three days, the most severe phase of the city’s prolonged lockdown yet.
Commercial food delivery are not permitted, and all visits to hospitals must first be approved.
Neighbors of Covid-19 cases, as well as others living nearby, are being put into official quarantine centres.
Shanghai’s city-wide restrictions are already in their sixth week.
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