Officials in southern China have apologised to Guangzhou residents who have been quarantined in a hotel for breaking into their homes while looking for Covid suspects. According to state media, 84 homes in a Liwan district apartment complex were forcibly opened in order to find any ‘close contacts’ hiding inside and disinfect the premises.
The doors were later sealed and new locks were installed, according to the Global Times newspaper. The move, however, sparked a massive outcry among people, who slammed the officials for taking ‘heavy-handed’ virus-prevention measures, prompting the Liwan District government to apologise for the ‘oversimplified and violent’ behaviour.
The incident occurred on July 10, after several people at the complex tested positive for the Covid virus. Residents were relocated to a centralised quarantine facility, but ‘some close contacts were discovered hiding in their houses,’ prompting searches of other homes for ‘hidden residents,’ according to the newspaper. Pictures of the break-ins posted online on the popular Sina Weibo social network drew harsh reactions from people who labelled the incident ‘lawless’ and added that such behaviour ‘tramples on people’s civil rights’.
‘Is this a law-governed country?’ one person inquires. According to the BBC, ‘an apology is not enough’. Notably, this is not the first time such ‘high-handedness’ has occurred. Authorities, according to reports, have broken down doors and threatened residents with punishment even after they tested negative for Covid. In some cases, officials erected steel barriers and iron bars outside people’s homes to keep them from leaving.
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