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A Chinese think tank issued a rare public disagreement on Monday with the ruling Communist Party’s severe zero COVID policy, saying curbs that shut down cities and disrupt trade, travel and industry must change to prevent an economic stall.
The Anbound Research Center gave no details of possible changes but said President Xi Jinping’s government needs to focus on shoring up sinking growth. It noted the United States, Europe and Japan are recovering economically after easing anti-disease curbs.
Preventing the risk of economic stall should be the priority task, » the think tank said in a report titled, It’s Time for China to Adjust Its Virus Control and Prevention Policies.
Even such mild public disagreement with official policy is almost unknown in a politically sensitive year when Xi, China’s most powerful leader since at least the 1980s, is expected to try to extend his time in office.
The report, dated Sunday, was posted on the Anbound Research Center’s accounts on the popular WeChat messaging platform and the Sina Weibo microblog service but was deleted from both on Monday afternoon.
The anti-virus curbs are widely expected to stay in place at least until after a Communist Party meeting in October and November at which Xi is likely to break with tradition and award himself a third five-year term as leader.
Economists warn that China needs to boost growth that sank to 2.
