The latest COVID-19 outbreak in Hong Kong continues to deteriorate with skyrocketing daily infections. Only one and a half months into the fifth wave of the outbreak, the total number of infections reported within this short period of time has reached 14,069, surpassing the total number in the previous four waves of the outbreak.
On Wednesday, there were 4,285 new cases, and approximately 7,000 people tested preliminary-positive. While the health authority said 90 percent of the isolation beds in public hospitals were in use, it did not disclose how many COVID-19 patients were serving their quarantine at home.
As of Monday night, a total of 1,556 residences were included in the StayHomeSafe Scheme, which stipulates that the concerned occupant(s) must wear an electronic wristband and monitor their physical condition twice a day. As a matter of fact, the special administrative region government is only aware of the number of people in the program, but has no information about the potential carriers and their close contacts who may pose a health threat to the community.
For the sake of the local economy as well as the livelihood of residents, the SAR government must bring the fifth wave of the outbreak under control within the next two months
The elderly and children are the most vulnerable groups. A 3-year-old girl who was hospitalized at Hong Kong Children’s Hospital and a centenarian succumbed to the disease on Tuesday, marking the youngest and oldest victims of the outbreak. The coronavirus made its way to another eight elderly homes on the same day, and 53 elderly seniors tested positive at the AsiaWorld-Expo Temporary Quarantine Centre for Residents of Residential Care Homes for the Elderly. It is reported that more than 50 elderly-care homes in Hong Kong have reported cases of infections.
The central government has come to the rescue of embattled Hong Kong. At this critical juncture, President Xi Jinping issued important directives on supporting the city’s bitter fight against the pandemic, and asked Vice-Premier Han Zheng to convey his concern to Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and his caring for Hong Kong people. He emphasized the SAR government must shoulder the main responsibility for reining in the outbreak, which should be the top priority for the Hong Kong SAR government at this point. The SAR government should, as Xi noted, mobilize all manpower and resources and introduce necessary measures to ensure the health and safety of Hong Kong residents, as well as the social stability of the city. Xi stressed that the central government and relevant local authorities on the mainland must give their full support and assistance to the SAR government in the fight against the virus.
To the relief of Hong Kong residents, Han has instructed the relevant central government departments and the Guangdong provincial government to promptly respond to Hong Kong’s demand for assistance in various areas, including the expansion of Hong Kong’s testing capacity, the shipment of medical supplies like rapid test kits, the construction of temporary isolation and treatment facilities, the provision of sufficient fresh food and other daily necessities, as well as the dispatchment of medical experts to Hong Kong.
The cooperation between the two sides on anti-pandemic work is expected to go smoothly and bear fruit in a short time under a tripartite work cooperation mechanism led by the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council and the National Health Commission, involving central government departments, the Guangdong provincial government and the HKSAR government. Xi’s directives urging the SAR government to mobilize all the manpower and resources and introduce all necessary measures in the battle against the pandemic suggest that Lam shall marshal all patriotic groups and mainland enterprises in Hong Kong to work together to contain the outbreak, and imposing a citywide lockdown should be one of the options in the toolbox for fighting the virus.
With the strong support of the central government and the Guangdong provincial government, there is no more reason, or excuse, for Hong Kong to resign itself to a “lying flat” or “living with the virus” approach in the wake of the ferocious fifth, and fieriest, wave of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Indeed, the “living with the virus” approach, as we know it, does not conform to Chinese culture, which values every single life. People who champion “living with the virus” have unfortunately overlooked the lethality of the omicron variant, which has, according to the World Health Organization, killed half a million people around the world in just two months after its emergence. In an ominous prediction by University of Hong Kong researchers, even if a citywide lockdown is imposed, which is likely to prevent the public healthcare system from collapsing, an estimated 115 patients could still succumb to COVID-19 by mid-June. The scenario for a “lying flat” or “living with the virus” approach is simply beyond imagination.
Fortunately, the need for Hong Kong to resign itself to “living with the virus” has diminished with the strong backing of the central government, which will effectively help the special administrative region build up its anti-pandemic capacity in all areas, including vaccination, virus screening, quarantine and treatment. I am confident that the fifth wave of COVID-19 will be brought under control in a couple of months.
As the relatively stable economic rebound enjoyed by Hong Kong was botched by the current outbreak, unemployment, as well as closure of businesses, is expected to climb in the first quarter of this year. Major international investment banks have lowered their forecasts for economic growth for Hong Kong in 2022. For the sake of the local economy as well as the livelihood of residents, the SAR government must bring the fifth wave of the outbreak under control within the next two months.
The author is a senior research fellow of China Everbright Holdings.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.