Why China witnessed a rare protest against Xi Jinping

On Thursday, China’s capital, Beijing, witnessed a rare protest against President Xi Jinping and the Covid regulations imposed in several parts of the country. This public disapproval comes days before the week-long Commun Party’s National Congress, where Xi Jinping is expected to extend his leadership for a third term.
People residing in the big cities of China, including Shanghai, are facing stricter restrictions under the zero-Covid strategy, introduced the President in August 2021. The country has been battling the virus for more than two years since its outbreak in December 2019, and the protests prove – Xi’s strategy does not seem to be of much help.
What is China’s dynamic zero-Covid strategy?
China adopted the ‘dynamic COVID-zero strategy’ as a response to the highly transmissible Delta variant. The goal was to minimize the impact of the virus on China’s economy and society implementing effective measures, which includes strict lockdowns, mass testing, and travel restrictions around different parts of the country. It has led to tens of millions of Chinese citizens becoming confined to their homes, getting tested twice a week, being policed for masks and screened each time they enter premises.

What is the current count?
The recent rise in the number of Covid cases in China, following the 73rd National Day “Golden Week” holiday on October 1, have added to citizens’ dress.
The daily count of new infections has almost doubled since September, when cases stayed around 900 a day. According to the National Health Commission, China reported 1,624 new COVID-19 cases on October 12, and 1,456 infections the next day. The fatalities currently lie at 5,226.
As of October 13, the country had 255,168 confirmed cases with symptoms. Beijing reported 16 symptomatic cases and eight asymptomatic cases, as compared to 12 symptomatic and six asymptomatic on Wednesday.
As per a report published in news agency Reuters, the “financial hub Shanghai reported 47 asymptomatic cases and two symptomatic cases, compared with 44 asymptomatic and three symptomatic a day before. The southern technology hub of Shenzhen reported 32 new locally transmitted infections, compared with 26 a day before.”
A similar peak in the number of infections was observed in April and May this year, when China battled the Omicron variant. Around 20,000 cases were reported in Shanghai in the month of April.
Despite a significant rise in cases, the push for vaccinating citizens has not garnered enough interest from the government. Getting vaccinated is not compulsory in the country, and the vaccines available for its people are not entirely effective towards preventing the infection, according to Professor Liang Wannian who is leading the government’s expert panel on Covid.
China’s economy under Crisis: Is the Covid-zero strategy helping?
The restrictions imposed in around 60 towns and cities in China have kept its citizens from traveling, and forced them to quarantine. Authorities have restricted travelers, deliveries, as well as residents from entering or leaving the country.
China’s Twitter-alike Weibo is flooded with user complaints regarding Covid “pop-up windows” on health apps over smartphones that demand a PCR test to allow unrestricted movement. These enforcements have led Chinese residents to avoid expenditures on food, travel and retails, there putting the manufacturing, tourism and private industries under risk.
Besides Covid-induced regulations, China’s economy is slowing down as its currency yuan plummets against the US dollar. The export-based economy is also facing trade tensions with the US – where demands for Chinese products have witnessed a decline because of inflation, higher interest rates as well as war in Ukraine.
As Xi strengthens his hold in the country through state-owned companies, the private sector in China is undergoing a crisis. Moreover, China’s real estate activity, which contributes to a third of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as well as lesser demand for new homes, have added to the weakening economy. China’s official youth unemployment rate currently stands at 18.7%, which would hurt its economic growth in the future.

The 20th Party Congress which will host about 2,300 officials and delegates in China’s capital has further tightened its citizens’ access to the city stepping-up security measures. According to Reuters, Beijing has hired 42 guards to keep a 24-hour watch on “key people,” used to refer to those deemed to be troublemakers.
On October 13, 2022, Beijing saw a citizen-led protest, where banners attacking Xi Jinping’s government, were unfurled on Sitong Bridge in the capital’s Haidian drict. One of them read: “We need food, not Covid tests. We want freedom, not lockdowns.” State authorities guarding the area arrested at least one protester, and soon removed the political banners. President Xi Jinping was heard being referred to as a “dictator” over a megaphone, as per a video circulating online.
According to a note Capital Economics on Thursday, “There is no prospect of China lifting its zero-Covid policy in the near future and it probably won’t happen before the end of 2023.” The note continued, “Another year of zero-Covid equals another year of depressed consumer activity and a high risk of recurrent large-scale lockdowns.”
The Chinese Commun Party’s National Congress is scheduled to begin on October 16, 2022, at the Great Hall of the People in Tiananmen Square.