Shanghai defends policy of taking COVID-positive children away from their parents

04/06/2022 / By Ramon Tomey

Health officials in the city of Shanghai defended their policy of isolating children who test positive for the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) from their parents. The policy came amid China’s adherence to a zero-COVID policy to stem rising infections.

Wu Qianyu of the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission confirmed the eastern Chinese city’s COVID-19 policy on April 4. “If the child is younger than seven years old, those children will receive treatment in a public health center. For older children or teenagers, we are mainly isolating them in centralized [quarantine] places,” she said.

The health official added that the policy applies to children who test positive for COVID-19, but whose parents and family members do not. Wu also clarified that both children and parents who return a positive COVID-19 test result would be able to stay together as a family.

Under current COVID-19 protocols, anyone who tests positive – even if they are asymptomatic or show mild symptoms – must be isolated from non-infected people. She pointed out that Shanghai’s policy is in line with Beijing’s zero-COVID stance.

The COVID-19 policy confirmed by Wu has triggered a wave of anxiety and outrage across the city. Footage of babies and young children in state-run facilities that went viral on Chinese social media contributed to the tension.

Several parents also took to social media to voice out their discontent toward Shanghai’s draconian policy. “Parents need to meet ‘conditions’ to accompany their children? That’s absurd. It should be their most basic right,” wrote one commenter on Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter.

Wu’s remarks came as Shanghai, China’s largest city and financial center, battles a wave of COVID-19 outbreaks. The eastern port city, which is now the country’s COVID-19 epicenter, locked down its approximately 25 million residents to curb rising infections. (Related: To keep its residents “safe” from covid, Shanghai officials are starving people to death in their homes with new citywide lockdown.)

Authorities admit failure while Shanghai residents starve

Authorities in Shanghai initially promised not to lock down the entire city, instead sealing off specific compounds or districts through localized lockdowns. However, they admitted defeat with the targeted strategy as COVID-19 cases spiked and proceeded to impose a blanket lockdown. The blanket lockdown was initially set to last four days to enable mass testing for residents in Shanghai’s eastern and western portions.

Under the plan, the blanket lockdown was supposed to be lifted on April 5. However, Shanghai’s local government posted on its official WeChat account that the lockdown will remain in place due to the high number of COVID-19 cases. The announcement added to the frustrations of residents unable to obtain food supplies and leave their homes.

Several residents shared their stories to the Epoch Times. Fifty-six-year-old Wan Wenying, who lives in Shanghai’s Baoshan district, mentioned how local community officials refused to help her after she ran out of food. One official even told her to have cooked meals delivered to her residence, which she cannot do given her lack of income and ineligibility to receive social benefits.

“Our residential compound has been sealed off for four days. The government doesn’t care if its people are alive or dead. I don’t have any money, and I’m stuck at home,” Wan lamented.

Another Shanghai resident who went by the pseudonym Yang Lei, who lives in the Jing’an district, told the Epoch Times that local food prices had dramatically increased. Yang was still able to go out of her home, but some of her neighbors can no longer do so. She added that two buildings in her neighborhood had been sealed off after one resident in each building returned a positive COVID-19 test result.

Pandemic.news has more stories about the COVID-19 lockdowns in Shanghai.

Watch the EWTN news report below about Shanghai extending its lockdown.

This video is from the andamon channel on Brighteon.com.