The last week has been a momentous one for china. We started with remonstrations by people in many parts of China frustrated at the lockdowns and the gloomy economic prospects. There was a sort of simultaneous awakening by younger people in many parts of the country, and it was nostalgic to see the way they gathered, and the kinds of things they said, all reflective of the enforced amnesia that is so much a part of modern China.
Then came the death of a previous party chief, Jiang Zemin, who, in many ways, symbolized an alternative way of managing China’s economy, society, and relations with the outside world. The death of Mr Jiang at 96, led to an outpouring of online comments and reminiscences of relevance really only as a counterpoint to today.
And then came hints of a change in pandemic management, with apparently a decision to allow the virus to have its way with the goal of creating herd immunity. The subtle sense of an impending shift in dynamic zero leading to, maybe, an end to lockdowns and quarantines was obviously a response to the street reactions and to the reality that the virus is now out there. Can herd immunity be achieved and and at what cost? How will it play out? It’s not known. But dynamic zero cannot stop the virus and there are a growing number of official comments suggesting omicron is not necessarily much more than a bad cold. It’s all confusing. No doubt clarity will emerge before too long. Maybe March?
Have a good weekend.
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