China is tied to a zero-Covid strategy, wielding snap lockdowns, mass testing and lengthy quarantines as part of unrelenting efforts to quash virus outbreaks no matter the cost to the economy or freedoms of its people.
The sight has become one of the most visual expressions of China's zero-Covid policy, which has taken on a political dimension as President Xi Jinping has pegged the legitimacy of his leadership on protecting Chinese lives from Covid. "Since infection through touching contaminated surfaces is not an important route of transmission, extensive and aggressive use of disinfectant is not necessary," said Yanzhong Huang, senior fellow at the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations.The odds have not deterred China's disinfectant sprayers.
Other clips show workers wandering through streets and housing compounds, casually spritzing walls, scooters -- and even the ground while residents line up for tests. Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious disease expert at Singapore's Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, said outdoor disinfection was"absolutely pointless."- Politics of spraying -