In response to widespread demonstrations demanding an end to lockdowns and more political freedom, cities throughout China significantly relaxed testing and quarantine regulations on Friday.

Several cities have recently started to relax COVID-19 regulations, such as ceasing daily mass testing, which was a tiresome need under Beijing's rigid zero-Covid policy.

Some officials in the Chaoyang district of Beijing said people who tested positive there would no longer have to go to central quarantine, while authorities in the southern factory hub of Dongguan have said those who meet “specific conditions” should be allowed to quarantine at home. They did not specify what those conditions would be.

The southwestern metropolis of Chengdu from Friday no longer required a recent negative test result to enter public places or ride the metro, instead only demanding a green health code on an app confirming people have not traveled to a “high-risk” area, while Beijing announced on Friday that using public transport in the city would no longer require a negative PCR test taken within 48 hours.

Central government officials have also signaled that a broader relaxation of the zero-COVID-19 policy could be in the work