People's support key to defeating pandemic: China Daily editorial

Despite the authorities having conducted multiple rounds of mass nucleic acid testing, suspending most face-to-face business operations citywide, and requiring people to work from home, around a month into the latest wave of the novel coronavirus in Beijing and the epidemic situation in the city shows no signs of easing.

According to the Beijing Center for Disease Prevention and Control, 63 new locally transmitted infections were reported on Monday, bringing the total number of cases in the capital to 1,534 since April 22.

Although the outbreak in Beijing has still not yet been fully contained, the prevention and control measures have kept the daily rate of infections at a low level. Yet cluster outbreaks and sporadic cases in communities continue to appear and the lack of any improvement in the situation raises the question of whether there are any loopholes in the city's anti-pandemic regime that need to be plugged.

While virus control measures being implemented in Beijing are strict, they are necessary because of how contagious the Omicron variant of the virus is. Only by containing its spread can a spike in COVID-19 infections be avoided and resumption of work and production be achieved at an early date, and costs to the economy and people's livelihoods be minimized.

At this critical moment, every member of society must realize the responsibility they shoulder and play their part by faithfully following all government prevention and control protocols.

It is disappointing therefore that a medical testing lab named Pushi recently was reported to have provided test result data that was obviously lower than the number of tested samples. Six people have been detained by the police in relation to the case.

And at least four employees at a branch of China Railway 11th Bureau Group are under criminal investigation for intentionally concealing the travel histories of some colleagues and illegally altering their health code status so as to enable them to travel among different districts. Among the 25 people involved, 20 were confirmed as positive cases, forcing at least 21 venues to be placed under restrictions, and more than 900 people to be quarantined.

Meanwhile, officials at all levels must adopt a scientific approach in their prevention and control work, and try their best to help affected enterprises and ensure supplies of daily necessities to residents so that they are willing to comply with all restrictive measures. Unscientific restrictions must be avoided because they do a disservice to the anti-pandemic work.

With strict crackdowns on such deceptions and concealment, and rigorous adherence to the prevention and control measures, experts expect the capital will be able to get the situation under control.