Since the breakout of the Covid-19 in Wuhan in February 2020, many manufacturers raced to produce vaccines to protect people from the novel corona virus. The effectiveness of some of the vaccines developed by pharmaceutical manufacturers, according to a study by WebMD, ranges from 95% by Pfizer to 66.1% by Johnson and Johnson. After 2 years, however, many do not know the real effectiveness of the vaccines developed by Chinese manufacturers, who use inactivated COVID-19 in producing vaccines.

In early September 2020, as the other countries were still struggling to contain the pandemic, Xi Jin Ping proclaimed that 
'China was ahead of the curve in the world in controlling the Covid-19 and managing its economic recovery'. In a celebratory conference at the Great Hall of the People on September 8, 2020, Xi presented medals to some advisors and individuals for their contribution in containing the pandemic. For a while, it seemed that China indeed had the virus under control. 

However, little was mentioned about the efficacy of the vaccines developed by the SinoPharm and SinoVac, 2 major Chinese manufacturers. The effectiveness of the Chinese vaccines was doubted by a large number of consumers in China given numerous vaccine-related scandals in the past. 


Based on data from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), people generally prefer mRNA vaccines developed by Pfizer and Moderna as they deliver safety, effectiveness and rare negative side effects. Nevertheless, except to a small number of privileged people, the vaccines developed by leading manufacturers such as Pfizer and Moderna, are not widely available in China. This decision was likely made by the very top decision makers.   



Source: WebMD Covid Vaccines Compared. 



Brazilian officials initially claimed CoronaVac, the vaccine produced by Sinovac, showed 78% efficacy against mild to severe cases in local trials. But following criticism over a lack of data transparency, scientists announced days later that the overall rate was only 50.4% — just above the threshold required for regulatory approval — once “very mild” cases were included.


The Xi's Politburo repeatedly resorts to lockdowns, first in Wuhan (population 11 million), then Xian (8.5 million), Jilin City (3.6 million), and now in Changchun (4.6 million) and Shanghai (25 million), which is a major economic engine for China's economy. The authorities seem to believe the lockdowns can be as effective as the vaccines without major side effects. The lockdowns, however, have severe economic consequences - causing severe harms to businesses, particularly small and midsize businesses that are most vulnerable. Not to mention the elderly and patients already suffering from other illnesses. There have been numerous deaths of some elderly and patients with asthma or other sicknesses in China. 


In Shanghai, authorities required separation of those suspected of being infected by the Covid-19 variant, including children. This led to forced separation of children from their parents, who became more anxious once they learned of the poor care given to their children due to a shortage of nurses. The separation practice caused a public outcry and even a protest from the French Consulate General who wrote on behalf of 22 countries in the EU demanding 'not to separate children from their parents under any circumstances.' 

From the experience in Australian, Europe, England and the U.S. where the Covid-19 restrictions are gradually being loosened, the really effective method of dealing with and controlling the pandemic is making available working vaccines, rather than lockdowns. Unfortunately, in a public health crisis like that going on in Shanghai, the rigidness of a rigime controlled by one man and the top-down dominance of the party are imposed upon tens of millions of people regardless of the rationality of the adopted measures.  


As a result of the harsh lockdown measures to contain the COVID-19, China's economy has shown telling signs of contraction. Typically, March is a month of economic expansion in China in an normal year. In March 2022, however, the most recent manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMI indices both fell below 50, indicating contracting economic activities, as seen in the chart below.