BEIJING: China's "zero Covid" program has met with a severe wave of anger as protests rage across the country. The public is asking the government not only to roll back the Covid policies but also for the Chinese premier Xi Jinping to step down.
Protestors from different locations came to the streets of the major cities of the country including Shanghai and Beijing on the weekend. Educational institutions also saw protests as people took to the streets, shouting slogans and confronting the police when stopped. Several people have been arrested in the last few days regarding such protests.
Protests are very rare and nearly unheard of in the country as the law makes it a criminal offence. The last protest that happened in the country was 33 years ago and was headed by the students of the country who wanted to change the government system to democracy. The protest was centred around the popular Tiananmen Square and has violently crushed by the administration and military.
Most Chinese citizens took to protests against the rigid lockdown in the country which have no scientific or statistical benefit. While most of the countries now treat covid to be a minor medical problem, China continues its lockdown policies. These lockdowns have severely affected the economic conditions of a huge segment of the public and the frustration over almost the last four years has started to show. Also, the government not paying heed to the needs of the public is adding fuel to the anger.
The identification system in place across important cities uses the latest AI tech to keep an eye on almost everyone across the country. Thus allowing them to put specific people on house arrest and control the intensity of protests. There are also reports of the use of non-lethal force to keep protestors in check. Initially, this system was introduced to keep the minority Tibetans and Uighurs in check.
Reports of an international journalist working for the BBC being beaten up, kicked and handcuffed for filming the protests have also surfaced. The organisation has asked for an explanation regarding the incident.
Nevertheless, as the protests grow stronger across the country, people all around the world try to figure out the course of action Xi Jinping would attempt to follow.
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