China is erupting with protests against the authorities in major cities in the country. Since November 27th, 2022, the protestors have taken to the streets to express their discontent against the Zero Covid policy that the country has implemented. After a fire erupted in Urumqi which took the lives of ten individuals due to the late arrival of the fire brigade as a result of the policy, the country is blazing with demonstrations.
Since Covid-19 began in 2020, China has been under fire due to the frustration of its citizens. The country implemented strict restrictions tamping down the movement of the people in the country for a long time. The protests erupted in small numbers on a micro level by students, consumers, etc., due to movement restrictions, frozen bank deposits, and a shortage of food. But, the protests that happened over the weekend in November 2022 were the most radical ones. But, is it limited to the zero-Covid policy?
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How The Protests Started In China?
On November 24th, 2022, in the far western region of Xinjiang in Urumqi, a fire started in a residential building. This incident took the lives of 10 people and left nine injured. After the fire, videos started surfacing on the internet that the delay in the help from firefighters was due to stringent lockdown measures. Urumqi has been under lockdown for 100 days now with restricted movement and getting stranded in their homes.
On November 27th, 2022, the number of asymptomatic Covid patients was as high as 40,052 when the protests broke out. But, before that, when the protestors took to the streets to ask the government to remove the restrictions, the authorities were vague about it. However, this did not satisfy the citizens and demonstrations started breaking out in universities and cities beyond Xinjiang. CNN noted that 23 demonstrations took place in 17 cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Wuhan.
The Protests In China Are A Direct Challenge To President Xi Jinping
On November 28th, 2022, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian was asked whether the demonstrations would end the country’s zero Covid policy. To this, Zhao replied, “What you mentioned does not reflect what happened”. The spokesperson assured that people in China “enjoy various legal rights and freedoms that are fully protected by law. At the same time, any rights and freedoms should be exercised within the framework of the law”.
However, the protests were focused on, but not limited to the removal of the zero-Covid policy. The protestors highlighted other problems challenging the reign of their leader President Xi Jinping. In Shanghai, people gathered at Urumqi Road for a candlelight vigil for the dead victims.
As a symbol of protest, people held blank white sheets to protest against censorship. Many chanted for Xi to step down and sang the Socialist anthem ‘Internationale’ for the quasi-authoritarian rule of the President and extreme surveillance. The policy that he praised, recorded fewer deaths per capita compared to the US and has turned into a nightmare for its people due to unemployment, surveillance, and extreme conditions of minorities like Uyghurs.
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