Shanghai warned on Wednesday that anyone who violates the city’s extreme COVID-19 rules will face punishment as case numbers have increased across the nation.
The city police department urged its 25 million residents to “fight the epidemic with one heart … and work together for an early victory.”
Shanghai warns residents who violate COVID lockdown will face punishment: report https://t.co/HhPwmxQnpf via @foxnews
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“Those who violate the provisions of this notice will be dealt with in strict accordance with the law by public security organs … If it constitutes a crime, they will be investigated according to law,” the department said in a statement.
Shanghai police also warned of frustrated incidents, many of whom have been forced to stay inside their homes for two weeks, not to spread false information or forge clearance certificates.
They also banned cars from the roads apart from those involved in epidemic prevention or transporting people in need of emergency medical treatment.
The restrictions have led to concerns as residents are unable to get daily supplies, as well as struggling to secure deliveries for their food because of inflation.
Authorities had already issued 38,000 letters of warning against price gouging and were also investigating complaints of irregular pricing on social media.
“If illegal acts like price gouging take place, it will be investigated and punished firmly and quickly,” said Peng Wenhao, an official with Shanghai’s market supervision bureau.
The U.S. State Department has issued a travel warning to China due to “arbitrary enforcement of local laws and COVID-19-related restrictions” and “the risk of parents and children being separated.” It had also notified all “non-emergency” government employees to leave Shanghai’s consulate.
“Do not travel to the PRC’s Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Jilin province, and Shanghai municipality,” the advisory read. “The PRC government arbitrarily enforces local laws, including carrying out arbitrary and wrongful detentions and using exit bans on U.S. citizens and citizens of other countries without due process of law.”
China’s commercial capital is under pressure to try to contain the country’s biggest COVID-19 since the coronavirus was first discovered in Wuhan city back in late 2019.
Shanghai reported 25,141 new asymptomatic coronavirus cases for Tuesday, up from 22,348 a day earlier, and symptomatic cases also soared to 1,189 from 994, city authorities said.
