foreign forces will prevent further advances by the armed group. >> twitter ceo it says he is granting amnesty for suspended a grants -- accounts. and a triple, he is asked of accounts that have not broken or engaged in egregious spam should be reinstated. the billion or says a change will take place next week some experts are concerned it will lead to a rise in online harassment, hate, this information. --disinformation. this is al jazeera and these are the top stories. day five of the world cup in

qatar, portugal, brazil, switzerland where the winners in thursday's matches come uruguay and south korea play to a goal list drawl. we have a reaction from a fan and redo -- in rio de janeiro. reporter: until last week that much was going on in brazil. it seemed as though the country was not in the world cup. this has changed, we are standing on the beach, the iconic beach of rio de janeiro. where the fan fest is being held, people were jumping and crying with a saw brazil score 2 goals. they are looking forward to the next game that will be on monday against switzerland. there hoping that present will win the unprecedented 6th world cup title. >> power restored to parts of the ukrainian capitalkyiv, much of the country remains without heat and electricity and water supply following russian airstrikes on ukraine's energy

grid. eu members have failed to agree on a price cap for natural gas, the block will hold another round of talks next month to try and bridge differences. china has reported 31,000 covid-19 infections in 24 hours. the highest number in a single day since the pandemic began. lockdown restrictions and testing requirements have been put in place in multiple cities including the capital beijing. a commemoration has taken place in dunkirk in northern france marking a year since 27 people, all migrants drowned in the english channel. it was a disaster the french government has sent said should have been prevented. those of the headlines, the news continues to make your on al jazeera, after inside story. ♪

♪ cyril: anger and frustration in china as repeated covid-19 lockdowns hurt economic activity and isolate millions of people. so why does beijing persist with its strict policy while the rest of the world is moving on? this is "inside story." ♪ cyril: and welcome to the program it's great to have you with us. i'm cyril vanier china's zero tolerance approach to covid-19 involves widespread lockdowns travel restrictions and mass testing. but nearly three years after the pandemic was first identified in wuhan cases have surged to a new high the outbreaks have forced shutdowns in large swaths of the

country despite the strict policy being eased earlier this month and the repeated lockdowns have led to displays of public anger including factory workers fighting with security forces. we will get to our panel shortly first though this report from sharief. reporter: where scenes of open descent in china workers are the world's biggest iphone factory smash surveillance cameras and fought with security forces. already frustrated by covid restrictions isolating the plant 19 from the outside world they are further angered by reports of payment delays the employer foxconn has apologized. the protests come at a time when china's logging a record number of infections that's been accompanied by lockdowns and mass testing as part of president xi jinping's zero covert strategy . it was eased earlier this month and now only affected areas are being locked down and not entire cities

. people in beijing say the shutdowns are taking a toll only by using covid-19 curves can people living a life. otherwise everything's halted how many people have savings to support them if things continually stay halted and even if you have money to stay at home every day that's not true living. that's lingering on the last breath of air reporter: low vaccination rates among the elderly are a major hurdle china's national health commission says 66% of those 80 and above are fully vaccinated and only 40% have got a booster while in the u.s the vaccination rate for seniors is more than 90 percent. >> without a claim any other measures like for instance strengthening of the healthcare system ensuring that people are vaccinated or not then essentially they're just kicking the can down the road. reporter: the international

monetary fund is urging china to increase its vaccination rates. it says persistent gaps in inoculations are leading to frequent lockdowns and hurting economic activity. financial analysts at numura estimate areas accounting for one-fifth of china's gross domestic product are under lockdown. a share bigger than the british economy sharief, for inside story. cyril: let's bring in our guests einar tangen, a senior fellow at the taihar institute the think tank based in beijing alicia garcia herrero in taipei alicia garcia herrero -- you lady global citizenship program on the operates of infectious diseases. they can for being with us. first question, the less -- the rest of the world is learning to live with covid, is it time for

the world to do the same? >> china has been fairly successful in what it is doing. it is never one of the world of terms of population, inking 89th in the terms of deaths. when you start looking at the current situation, they have 2000 cases, absolute huge spike from china standards. right now many nations are not even keeping track. japan, the third largest economy in the world, he had over 60,000 cases. over 130 deaths compared to china. china has a lot in terms of its past. the question is what does it do about the future? people keep saying let's move on. that is like saying let's move on from climate change. the virus is the virus. you see over 300 variants out there plus long covid is really hitting a lot of people hard. about 3% still have symptoms when you're afterwards.

the chinese government is concerned about being overwhelmed with its medical system. having people dying in the streets. this is a socialist country, they tend to put people first. obviously, in any capitalist economy they put the economy first. so it is a difference of opinion in terms of policy and culture. cyril: the city put people first , but a lot of people are fed up. what happens if china flexes its anti-covid measures? oksana: there are several things. first of all the elderly population there is a big vaccine the -- vexing gap. also the types of vaccines. the mrna visor vaccine --pfizer vexing has more efficacy, there is a protective element the next

step is to drive up the vaccination rate in the most viable of society. switching which public health tools they are using to protect their people. there will be again, a bit of an immunity vulnerability cap in this area -- gap in this area. because they have, through quite extreme measures, compared to other countries, keep cases relatively low. however, long-term we do see that covid is endemic. it does mean there is going to be a situation in which, unless there are other tools used, you cannot go on locking down permanently. you have to balance public-health measures. public-health is not just about covid. public-health is about other diseases, too. people's health starts to suffer because there is an obsession

with covid. that is not a healthy public health policy. cyril: the key is balance, that's what this conversation is about. let's bring in another aspect, and an end 12 this. alicia, what is beijing zero covert pauses during two china's economy? alicia: as of 2022 we have estimated zero covid policies, restrictions and mobility for lockdown and other issues to have wiped out as much as 2.3% of growth. if china ends the year, is likely at around 3% would imagine in growth possibly having been much closer to the official target. it would have been 5.2, close to 5.5% that is the target. in the way one could say because of zero covid china has missed

its growth target. i might understand that is less important than saving lives and everything else. i am just saying it is costly that is very clear. cyril: at the outset of this conversation we see there are competing factors that need to be balanced. economic growth, there is how you do it, there is how people feel about it. all of these need to be factored in. einar tangen, you said in a socialist system people are prioritized over the economy. i want to read you a quote. this is something we pulled off the chinese social media network. it was written on november 24. it says this. >> has been three years, i've never questioned our policy, looking at how everything is the same as for years ago. endless lockdowns, awful hospital food, and a turnaround to see the cheerful crowd at the world cup not a single person was wearing a mask i can't help but ask is china the only

place on earth with covid outbreaks now. how does beijing say to the 1.4 billion chinese, millions amongst you are having to suffer lockdowns that are decided overnight. that can be drastic. the rest of the world has somehow found a formula to avoid these. >> the -- they have not found a formula, the u.s. has lost three years of longevity since 2019, there has been a cost, 6.5 million people dead, that is a cost, you might say what is the -- what the heck, everyone is dying, who cares. that is a callous attitude, in terms of frustration israel -- it is real. i am in beijing, i am under lockdown. this is the reality of a different system. you can say you do not like it but china has done pretty well throughout this entire period. the only country that has been

consistently growing during this whole period. they banners of things fairly well. saying we do not like what you're doing because it is hurting us because we have irresponsible and our approach to this is kind of nonsense. there has to be some sort of balance that we are talking about. cyril: the question is i hear your argument about how china has done so far. about limiting the number of deaths. the question now, we are three years on from the moment when initially the virus was detected in china. how do we move onto the next phase of virus containment? this is not going away. excess was trying -- what china is trying to do, the reason is

because they may use these want instruments, they have lockdown entire cities. there try to be more surgical in their approach. in beijing they resisted from having wholesale lockdowns. they would go to committees and say you lockdown for five days -- communities that you would like to for five days instead the usual three weeks. they have been trying to adjust. has not necessarily been producing the same results. i would like to ask you why isn't everyone is talking about china with 30,000 cases when japan has 6000 cases a day, -- 60,000 cases a day and literally 30 times more deaths. it does not seem to bother anyone out there. it is not a topic of conversation. from beijing's point of view they are struggling to do this. you think they do not want economic growth? this has been the main hallmark of the entire chinese economy for the last 40 years.

this idea that they are doing this to frustrate their citizens is nonsense. the fact that we are discussing this now as if it is a major issue, when there are much larger ones out there, kind of indicates a media bias, don't you think? cyril: why think, one reason we are discussing it is because we are seeing, what you might describe as on social unrest across the country. is not one city or to city of several dozen cities. einar: where? cyril: you are in a country -- einar: be specific. you are talking about zhengzhou , where a taiwanese company foxconn has not paid the wages promised. you have the rights there. what other -- riots there. cyril: we see pictures from multiple cities.

einar: what cities are talking about? i follow the news, i have not seen it, i do have a vpn. cyril: i follow the news, i will not be able to river the cities. not owing to the fact that they do not exist, i do not remember long list of chinese city names. einar: there is frustration across the board on social media. being frustrated is not the same thing as denying it. it is like saying i am frustrated about global warming. i want to move on. global warming is a fact just like the pandemic is a fact. as our experts in medicine pointed out this will continue. the question is, how do you continue? china does not have the medical resources that you have in the us or even in japan or south korea? it would be overwhelmed, the type of response you are having in japan. cyril: let's get that point of view from oksana, from a public health point of view come how do you move on?

how do you start addressing this in a different way in 2022 that you were doing in 2021? oksana: there is a lot to unpack your. one of the things to -- highlight, on the one hand we are not just saying many countries, yes have, let's say drop the ball in other ways that you can slow down the spread of covid. i am worried that the narrative of the conversation we are having when nose we are all coldhearted, we do not care, and we are happy for people to die. because they do have the same to conan lockdowns. there is more -- draconian lockdowns. there is more, you can have air filtration, ensuring that their other other types of treatment available. you can encourage people to have support when they isolate. you can still use things like

face masks, etc.. those are the tools available to us. that is where the balance lies. is not saying covid is overdue nothing. some countries have done a good job of ensuring, in addition to now having the booster campaign over the winter with the bivalent booster to add up that boost and immunity that is -- in immunity, that is important. and the vaccine plus, we do not need to complete polarize it if you are not doing a lockdown you're not doing anything. that is not fair to other countries. is a blended approach. i think that in terms of, again, the unrest that we are seeing, that is a result of the more extreme ways to deal with health issues. but, one thing that is interested, all over the world, even in countries where there is more state media censorship the

issue of anti-vax has not gone away. there is distrust of the vaccines in china, just as we assume that distrust and every other country. this is a momentous -- moment to try and learn from each other and how we continue to build trust. really with experts in science and medicine. that is a coming together point. around using the tools that are available to us. cyril: oksana, oksana, if i can talk -- jump in if you talk about the tools available. you mention the importance of vaccination, just under 70% of 80-year-olds in china are fully vaccinated. only 40% of had a booster. compare that to the 90% for the same age group for seniors and say the, -- in say the us. how important is it to increase vaccination coverage in china?

>> we have 1.4 billion people who are vaccinated. there are two elements, the efficacy of vaccines used, and the most vulnerable age gap most likely to have the severe consequences of covid there is this lack in uptake, or other vaccination delivery failure. that needs to be, that is a big vulnerability spot in the covid strategy. it could be why the rationale for the types of responses that we have seen. however -- cyril: does china need to change vaccines? do they need to switch to mrna vaccines that you alluded to earlier? oksana: i think so, certainly. that would be one aspect. einar: i listen to what you said, i do not understand. ok, where you coming from with this idea about vaccines.

the new england journal of medicine have come out and said if you've had 4 instances, covid, any mix of vaccines, have the same efficacy. the chinese vaccine for other countries, or mrna. where again this idea that somehow mrna is secure? -- superior? oksana: we do see that there is better coverage with mrna-- einar: i talked to the former second-in-command at the dub you ho, he confirmed this, which journal, in total, after 4 more effective than a mixture of these? oksana: certainly the bivalent booster that has become more available there have been recent publication in january. there is a publication in jama the highlights the efficacy gap.

now it is difficult, i will say, there has been some transparency surrounding issues around them. we would love to have more transparency on that aspect. there are studies that indicate mrna is the superior vaccine. cyril: sorry guys, i'm going to jump in here and cut this a little bit short. respectfully want to bring in a licia -- alicia garcia herrero. from an economic standpoint, most economic forecasts are basing forcasts for chinese growth in 2023 on the assumption that china will open up and most forecasting houses believe that will happen in the second half of next year. wind they make that assumption?

other factors you believe it will be the case? do you believe will just be a reasonable response on the chinese government? alicia: most analysts are expecting the chinese government to engage in a massive vaccination campaign, basically. because independently, on the efficacy of the vaccines, let's just think of increasingly vaccine ratio. especially for elderly. it seems to me, a no-brainer that this is something china can do fast. when comparing the number of deaths, to be frank, i. am an economist. filler thing i have to say, they said before and after. that is when vaccinations are ready. even if there has been additional after the vaccination rate, they of course are less.

i guess china will have to cope with that as everyone else. it will have to be after the vaccination rate is as high as it has been elsewhere. let's say singapore or many many countries in the world. cyril: this is interesting. alicia: the underlying assumption that the vaccination rate will get much higher. cyril: you are saying vaccination rates one analyst -- one part analysts look at that beijing. might take to impact the economy. . what other measures are economist looking at? alicia: basically the degree of mobility. what we have learned, very clearly in the european case, second wave, i.e. delta, and much more so with omicron. you can have much more targeted measures, i.e., refusal ability much less and still have additional covid policy.

they're trying to find ways that still keep cases at bay, but in a way that develops immunity. that is another important issue. you have to get to that in immunity level. therefore avoid deaths, but at the same time, harm the economy less. that is the question. >> do you expect in 2023, next year china and xi jinping might finesse the policy to deal with covid? einar: i still think they are dealing with it from a scientific perspective. and they are not without fault. a year ago, they took their foot off the gas in terms of getting people vaccinated. the fact is, regardless of what vaccine you get, six months after you've had your last booster or original two shots, the efficacy has gone down dramatically. we have checked that on the science side.

you have to have it every six months, the booster, china has not had that. people that did get it, in many cases 1.5 years since the original shot. they need to get boosted. china's internal target, i believe is 60% vaccinated within the last six months. booster for original ones. obviously they are going after the low hanging fruit in terms of the elderly. there are about 24 million elderly who have not ever been vaccinated. absolute what alicia has reference, this mobility issue very much on their mind. that is why they have tried not have the wholesale lockdowns. it is a tricky thing. if they have the kind of medical facilities to deal with that they would do it. the reason i was being difficult, right now you have seven other countries that have many more deaths including austria with a fraction of the population. south korea, japan, taiwan, no

one is talking about that. they have far more deaths. in the case of taiwan, 20 times more deaths. it just seems that china is always the one that's being blamed as somehow, the villain in this when in the past they have been more successful. yes, i agree they have to adjust. cyril: our right, well look thank you very much absolutely nobody here is calling or framing china as a villain and you will have noticed that covid policies around the world in all countries not just china are not exactly something that we underreport. it's something that we look at pretty forensically across the world but i know we heard all your arguments and we always appreciate a robust conversation here on al jazeera so i want to thank all our guests einar tang and alicia garcia herrero and oksana pijik and thank you for watching as well you can see the program again anytime by visiting our website aljazeera.com to further discussion go to our facebook page that's facebook.com/ajinsidestory you can also join the

conversation on twitter or @ajinsidestory from me, cyril vanier and the entire team here in doha, bye for now. ♪

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