Despite the biggest protests in China for decades, the government does not want to hear about popular dissatisfaction with its strict zero-Covid strategy. “What you’re talking about doesn’t reflect what really happened,” said foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian in Beijing when asked by journalists about the displeasure of many citizens and the demonstrations with thousands of participants in several major cities.
In his noticeably short reaction, the spokesman also expressed his conviction that the fight against the corona pandemic would be successful – “under the leadership of the Communist Party and with the support of the people”.
These are the largest demonstrations since the democracy movement in China in 1989, which the military brutally suppressed at the time. There were protest marches over the weekend in the capital Beijing and other cities with over a million inhabitants such as Shanghai, Chengdu, Chongqing, Wuhan, Nanjing, Xi’an and Guangzhou. They were directed against the strict measures of China’s zero-Covid policy, such as repeated lockdowns, mass corona tests and forced quarantine.
The demonstrations lasted until Monday night. Dissatisfaction is also stirring at universities such as Tsinghua University in Beijing. It was unclear how many people were arrested. China was in virtual news blackout. Social media were full of video recordings, which were quickly deleted by the censors. In the early hours of the night, a large contingent of police in Beijing went against hundreds near the diplomatic district.
Police show presence
Further protest actions were announced. But the government has mobilized strong security forces. Among other things, eyewitnesses reported a large police presence at critical points in Shanghai.
The trigger for the rare public expressions of displeasure was a house fire in the metropolis of Ürümqi in Xinjiang in north-west China on Thursday evening, killing at least ten people. Many expressed the suspicion that the rescue work was hampered by the strict corona measures.
As a symbol of resistance and protest against censorship, many demonstrators held up blank white sheets. “Unlock the lockdown” and “We don’t want PCR tests, we want freedom” were shouted.
Due to the rigid measures against the corona virus, dissatisfaction among the population had been increasing for weeks. Many megacities are largely paralyzed. People are bothered by the constant tests, curfews, forced quarantines, close surveillance by corona apps and contact tracing with which the authorities are trying to get a grip on the easy-spreading omicron variants of the virus.
BBC journalist arrested
BBC reporter Ed Lawrence was arrested during the protests in Shanghai and says he was mistreated by police officers. The BBC was “extremely concerned”. The journalist was beaten and kicked, even though he had accreditation. He was only released hours later. The British government reprimanded the arrest. It is “unacceptable” for a journalist to be arrested, cabinet member Grant Shapps told LBC radio.
China’s foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian justified the arrest by saying that the reporter did not identify himself as a journalist and did not voluntarily show his press card. The China Foreign Correspondents’ Club (FCCC) has criticized the police for their crackdown on journalists at the protests in Shanghai and Beijing.
Despite the strict measures taken against the virus, the population of billions is currently being hit by the worst corona wave since the pandemic began almost three years ago. The Health Commission reported a record high in the country on Monday with around 40,000 new infections. In Beijing there were almost 3,900 cases. Experts estimate that a fifth of the second largest economy and thus hundreds of millions of people across the country are likely to be affected by lockdowns.
Whole blocks of flats sealed off
Many companies are reaching their limits. Employed workers and migrant workers in particular often have to accept painful wage cuts. Even in the case of individual infections or suspected cases, entire blocks of flats and residential complexes are cordoned off. Angry residents tore down cordons in Beijing and elsewhere. In the capital, shops, restaurants and schools are closed anyway.
Deputy FDP parliamentary group leader Alexander Graf Lambsdorff told the German Press Agency: “I have long believed that the Chinese Communist Party’s zero-Covid policy is doomed to failure. The pressure among the population is increasing like in a steam boiler and breaking now for the first time train.” The combination of corona protests with demands for freedom and democracy in higher education has “a new quality”.
In the Politburo and Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, this could only be seen as a threat to their own claim to total power, said Lambsdorff. “One must therefore fear a very harsh reaction from the regime. The protests are still in their infancy. It would be naïve to believe that they could already lead to fundamental changes at this stage.”
