With demonstrators having upped the pressure on Beijing to change its stringent “COVID-zero” policy, the Chinese leadership’s prioritization of containing infections rather than effectively rolling out treatment for the virus has left it with only a few hard options to address the protesters' demands.
While the government recognizes the damaging socioeconomic impact of quarantines and lockdowns, it also understands that ceasing efforts to contain the virus would rapidly overwhelm the health care system and lead to a surge in deaths.
Faced with this dilemma, the Communist Party will eventually wind down restrictions, but for now the government is likely to follow a gradual multipronged strategy to the pandemic. This approach will see a focus on ramping up vaccinations, acquiring more effective jabs, changing the narrative about the virus, finding better treatment and improving communication.