Pre-vaccines, China’s Zero COVID approached seemed wise and impressive. Now it is clear that they were just paranoiacs and now have a policy that doesn’t meet the moment.
Pre-vaccine and before effective treatments and putting aside the initial attempt to pretend it wasn't happening/hush it up in the very very early days/weeks, it was a wise and impressive response. What worked and was smart then is not working or smart now. Things change.
Or creators of the virus know about some of its dangers more than the rest of the world.
Like most things made in China, COVID-19 was poorly engineered, just like their ham-fisted approach to combating it. Something about totalitarian regimes causes a race to the bottom in human rights, arts, and sciences.