A video posted Wednesday to Twitter purportedly shows a Chinese drone telling residents to “control” their “soul’s desire for freedom” and “comply” with lockdown restrictions as Shanghai residents are reportedly being starved out.
The video, posted by The Economist’s Senior China correspondent Alice Su and originally posted to Chinese social media app Weibo, purports to show a drone flying over homes in Shanghai saying “please comply with covid restrictions. Control your soul’s desire for freedom. Do not open the window or sing,” according to Su.
As seen on Weibo: Shanghai residents go to their balconies to sing & protest lack of supplies. A drone appears: “Please comply w covid restrictions. Control your soul’s desire for freedom. Do not open the window or sing.” https://t.co/0ZTc8fznaV pic.twitter.com/pAnEGOlBIh
— Alice Su (@aliceysu) April 6, 2022
Reports have emerged that people are fighting one another for basic necessities like blankets and food while being held at a quarantine center, video shared by CNN’s International correspondent Selina Wang showed.
Wang reported all residents who test positive for the coronavirus, regardless of whether they are symptomatic or asymptomatic, must go to either a hospital or quarantine facility.
BBC’s Shanghai-based reporter Edward Lawrence shared pictures Monday on Twitter showing how difficult it is for residents to obtain food. Lawrence said he was “given vegetables yesterday by govt but only enough for a couple of days.”
Nobody is allowed outside – not even one person to collect essentials. Given vegetables yesterday by govt but only enough for a couple of days. Need meat, rice, eggs, and most importantly water. Many of my friends in the same position. What about the elderly who don’t use apps?!
— Edward Lawrence (@EP_Lawrence) April 5, 2022
Chinese food delivery service Meituan has sent nearly 1,000 additional workers to the city, according to CNN. (RELATED: The Countries That Locked Down The Hardest Are Now Being Decimated By COVID-19)
“The difficulty of buying vegetables reflected by the public is mainly due to the lack of sorting and distribution capacity,” Meituan Vice President Mao Fang reportedly said at a press conference. “To this end, Meituan has called nearly a thousand skilled sorting personnel from around the country to help.”
Officials only recently reversed a policy decision that separated parents from young children infected with the coronavirus, according to The Associated Press (AP). Parents of children with “special needs” may now apply to stay with their child so long as they understand and sign an agreement acknowledging the health risks, according to the AP.
The outbreak began in March, sending the bustling city into strict lockdown. The city has more than 90,000 confirmed cases as of Wednesday, according to the AP.