Fears compete with 'freedom' calls at China protests
STORY: "Down with the Chinese communist party! Down with Xi Jinping!"
These were normally unspeakable words recently chanted by demonstrators in Shanghai at a protest against strict COVID restrictions, one of the many such eruptions that have taken global headlines.
But other protesters were quick to rebuke these kind of chants.
One lead protesters in Beijing told the crowd not to get too riled up.
It highlights the difficulties of gauging the mood at these protests, where every demonstrator knows cameras are on them - in a country where space for dissent is very narrow.
"We don't want to oppose any party, we don't care what it is, but we want to live."
These are scenes repeated across the country, according to social media posts and witness accounts.
John Delury, a professor of Chinese studies at South Korea's Yonsei University says there are all kinds of hidden disagreements that are latent within Chinese society.
"It’s a state-controlled media that’s always supposed to reinforce one line and one message. So, we actually, over the weekend, got a taste of where some of the disagreements, differences of opinion might exist within the Chinese society if it could speak openly.”
Protesters fed-up with Xi's zero-COVID policy pushed the boundaries by speaking for change in a country where a space for dissent has narrowed dramatically under President Xi Jinping's increasingly authoritarian rule.
One word that cropped up time and again in the protests was "Ziyou", which means freedom.
It can be interpreted as a demand for release from COVID curbs or a call for political freedom, and thus a challenge to the leadership.
Analysts say Xi has championed the zero-COVID policy, so even focused criticism of just the COVID curbs is also criticism of his leadership.
People sought to protect themselves during these protests by criticizing a policy and its impact, but not the leader and the government behind it, at least not directly.
Demonstrators also stressed that no "foreign forces" or "organizations" were behind them and they had turned out spontaneously, according to a Reuters witness.
China blamed pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong in 2019 in part on foreign meddling.
The government has announced the easing of COVID restricts this week but it is unclear if the easing of it will take the fire out of the frustrations.
"These are demonstrations in affluent areas in the core cities of the country, in the capital Beijing, in the commercial center, Shanghai, in sophisticated cities like Hangzhou and Chengdu. And if they hit hard right now on these groups, they’re just going to cut deeper into a bone in the society that I think even this all-powerful surveillance state is hesitant to do.”
相關影片推薦
- 2:00南海升溫台海降溫?美防長挺菲再提共同防禦!中國防部:不會任菲律賓胡來 ft.蔡正元【風向龍鳳配】風向龍鳳配133,799 次觀看・1 週前
- 2:14小米電動車「SU7」正式推出 95.5萬元起 叫陣特斯拉 中國上市27分鐘訂單破5萬輛Yahoo奇摩(國際通)28,026 次觀看・6 小時前
- 1:3845歲女醫院櫃檯前突昏倒 甲狀腺亢進引發心肌梗塞民視影音131,725 次觀看・1 天前
- 7:15譚敦慈:電鍋、悶燒鍋絕不這樣用!5件事拒絕「毒從口入」︱譚敦慈 X 張昭妤【早安健康】早安健康影音150,087 次觀看・6 小時前
- 3:23唐綺陽星座運勢:生活即將遇到很多切分點,敞開心胸準備迎接各式各樣的怪咖!唐綺陽談星室1,886 次觀看・6 小時前
- 0:45台北橋塞爆! 卡40分鐘 騎士控紅綠燈調配出包東森新聞影音116,944 次觀看・1 天前
- 2:05清境民宿老闆開槍洩憤 移送北檢全程沉默|#鏡新聞鏡新聞34,943 次觀看・7 小時前
- 2:02歐洲最長「超級高鐵」測試軌道開通 34鋼管連結420公尺路線、時速可達700公里Yahoo奇摩(國際通)66,435 次觀看・1 天前
- 1:31穿睡衣褲上班! 中國員工「噁心穿搭」風潮|#鏡新聞鏡新聞7,051 次觀看・1 天前
- 9:18番茄這樣做竟然這麼好吃,不用炸不用煎,加1塊豆腐,能讓你多吃兩碗飯,香!.芭樂媽的家 Qistin Wong TV63,260 次觀看・4 天前
熱門必看
- 1:17Angelababy瘋馬秀後復出 仍被踢出11年節目? 《奔跑吧》全新陣容「她」接替baby2個代言!娛樂星聞23,171 次觀看・3 天前
- 17:28朝聖2024年最新東京teamLab 現點飲料會開花?視覺震撼連發!Yahoo創作摩人8,406 次觀看・1 天前
- 11:39如何把芋頭做得好吃?教你這招,加1塊豆腐,一上桌就掃光,比肉還香!芭樂媽的家 Qistin Wong TV63,991 次觀看・4 天前
- 13:56高雄三民區宵夜美食|從台南紅到高雄的超人氣厚奶酥!自由搭配湯頭、麵條、配料的港味車仔麵、一鍋兩吃的麻辣干鍋!我是馬鈴薯小姐雁靈3,660 次觀看・2 天前
- 2:00簡單又美味,奶奶的紅燒桂竹筍麥可星級料理廚房32,570 次觀看・2 天前