China: 65 million people beg for food and health care

China is in a critical situation. Xi Jinping's communist regime continues with its 'zero covid' policy and maintains confinement in more than 30 regions of the country, where around 65 million people reside. The Chinese suffer severe hardship due to the confinements: they beg for food in the face of shortages and there is no medical care.

The fact that citizens continue to be confined to their homes not only deprives them of food and medical care, but also entails high economic costs and psychological damage.

One of the regions affected by these confinements is Xinjiang, in the northwest of the country, home to some 20 million people. A resident (whose real name was not disclosed) of the town of Ili told The Washington Post that "it makes you want to cry just mentioning the hardships they are going through."

"We have been locked in our house for more than 40 days. We lack everything, especially food. We only eat bread and porridge. There is no milk or vegetables," said the same citizen.

Apart from food shortages, there is also a lack of medical care. Parents are unable to take their sick children to hospitals and other people die because of this lack of health care.

The problem of food supply and medical care was compounded by the heat wave at the end of August, with the highest temperatures in China in 60 years, and the 6.8 earthquake in Sichuan province that left 74 people dead so far.

Covid situation in China

Is the situation in China so bad as to lock up 65 million people? Official data from the communist government recorded on Monday a total of 1,069 new cases of coronavirus throughout the country, with an average of 1,370 infections in the last week. A minuscule figure compared to the total number of inhabitants: 1.4 billion people.

In cities without outbreaks such as Beijing, residents are tested for coronavirus every three days to gain access to places of work and leisure. The police act aggressively in case of refusal to perform a test.

Xi Jinping's 'zero covid' policy generates complaints among the population. The communist president justifies the restrictions with the objective of eradicating the coronavirus and eliminating poverty.