Shanghai declares zero-Covid milestone but residents cast doubt on reopening

Since China’s leader Xi Jinping vowed to endure with his zero-Covid policy on May 5, Shanghai authorities have taken increasingly hardline measures, canceling food deliveries in some neighborhoods, forcing residents who tested negative for Covid into government quarantine and disinfecting their homes without consent.

However, while the tough measures have fueled discontent among residents, they also appear to have brought infections down. Shanghai reported fewer than 1,000 new cases on both Sunday and Monday — the first time under four figures since March 24, according to the city’s health commission.

At a news conference Monday, Shanghai officials declared the outbreak to be “under effective control” as 15 of the city’s 16 districts had stopped the community spread of Covid, with fewer than 1 million of its 25 million residents still in strict lockdown.

Officials said the city’s reopening will come in three phases, with the goal of restoring life to normal and fully restarting factories in June.

“From June 1 to mid- and late June, under the premise of controlling the risks of a rebound in infections, we will make epidemic prevention and control a normalized routine, and fully restore normal production and life in the city,” Deputy Mayor Zong Ming said.

Supermarkets, convenience stores and pharmacies began to reopen on Monday, Zong said, adding they would be followed by hair salons and wholesale agricultural markets.

Train services to and from Shanghai have also been gradually resuming since Monday, followed by domestic flights. Starting May 22, bus and subway services will resume. Passengers will need a negative Covid test — taken within 48 hours — to board public transport, according to Zong.

Shanghai residents unconvinced

The reopening roadmap was met with skepticism by some Shanghai residents who have lost trust in the local government.

When the local government announced a two-stage lockdown in late March, it said it would last for only four days and promised daily supplies would be sufficient. But days turned into weeks, and many struggled to secure access to food and other daily necessities.

“You can fool me, but please don’t do it too many times,” said a user on China’s Twitter-like Weibo platform, in a…