Posted on 12/06/2022 12:53:22 PM PST by nickcarraway
As the power to make decisions over COVID-19 restrictions had been delegated to local leaders, Beijing can distance itself from public frustration about harsh COVID-19 policies, says a China observer.
China was wracked with unprecedented anti-zero-COVID protests in late November. They started with a fire in Urumqi city, Xinjiang. At least 10 people perished after not being allowed to leave the building due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Local street demonstrations followed this tragedy. The next day, local authorities declared that the city had been rid of COVID-19 at the community level and issued a number of tone-deaf statements about the need for individual protection.
The demonstration in Xinjiang was followed on Nov 26 by a protest on Urumqi Road in Shanghai, where residents also railed against China’s current zero-COVID policy. Unusually, protesters called for regime change. Since then, there have been reports of nearly 100 protests in different parts of China, mainly in universities.
(Excerpt) Read more at channelnewsasia.com ...
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