11/28/22, 4:32 PM
China protests: At the heart of protests against zero-Covid, young people cry for freedom | CNN
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At the heart of China’s protests against zero-Covid,
young people cry for freedom
By Nectar Gan and Selina Wang and CNN's Beijing bureau
Updated 3:22 PM EST, Mon November 28, 2022
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A version of this story appeared in CNN’s Meanwhile in China newsletter a three-times-a-
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A version of this story appeared in CNN s Meanwhile in China newsletter, a three-times-a13 sources what
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(CNN) — For the first time in decades, thousands of people have defied Chinese
authorities to protest at universities and on the streets of major cities, demanding to
be freed not only from incessant Covid tests and lockdowns, but strict censorship and
the Communist Party’s tightening grip over all aspects of life.
Across the country, “want freedom” has become a rallying cry for a groundswell of
protests mainly led by the younger generation, some too young to have taken part in
previous acts of open dissent against the government.
“Give me liberty or give me death!” crowds by the hundreds shouted in several cities,
according to videos circulating online, as vigils to mark the deaths of at least 10
people in a fire in Xinjiang spiraled into political rallies.
RELATED ARTICLE
Protests erupt across China in unprecedented challenge to Xi Jinping's zeroCovid policy
Videos circulating online seem to suggest China’s strict zero-Covid policy initially
prevented emergency workers from accessing the scene, angering residents across
the country who have endured three years of varying Covid controls.
Some protesters chanted for free speech, democracy, the rule of law, human rights,
and other political demands across cities from the eastern financial hub of Shanghai
to the capital Beijing, the southern metropolis of Guangzhou and Chengdu in the
west.
CNN has verified protests in 16 locations, with reports of others held in dozens of
other cities and universities across the country.
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Protesters take to Hong Kong's streets in solidarity with mainland
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While protests in several parts of China appear to have largely dispersed peacefully
over the weekend, some met a stronger response from authorities – and security has
been tightened across cities in a country were authorities have far-reaching
surveillance and security capabilities.
In Beijing, a heavy police presence was apparent on Monday evening, a day after
protests broke out there. Police vehicles, many parked with their lights flashing, lined
eerily quiet streets throughout parts of the capital, including near Liangmaqiao in the
city’s central Chaoyang district, where a large crowd of protesters had gathered
Sunday night.
When asked Monday whether “the widespread display of anger and frustration” seen
across the country could prompt China to move away from its zero-Covid approach, a
Foreign Ministry spokesman dismissed suggestions of dissent.
“What you mentioned does not reflect what actually happened,” said spokesperson
Zhao Lijian, who added that authorities had been “making adjustments” to their Covid
policies based on “realities on the ground.”
“We believe that with the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party and the Chinese
people our fight against Covid-19 will be successful,” he said.
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Bloomberg/Getty Images
Demonstrators hold up blank sheets of paper during a protest in Beijing on November 28.
In a symbolic protest against ever-tightening censorship, young demonstrators across
China held up sheets of white paper – a metaphor for the countless critical posts,
news articles and outspoken social media accounts that were wiped from the
internet.
“I think in a just society, no one should be criminalized for their speech. There
shouldn’t be only one voice in our society – we need a variety of voices,” a Beijing
protester told CNN in the early hours of Monday as he marched down the city’s Third
Ring Road with a thin pile of white A4 paper.
“I hope in the future, I will no longer be holding a white piece of paper for what I really
want to express,” said the protester, who CNN is not naming due to concerns about
repercussions for speaking out.
RELATED ARTICLE
Rare protests are spreading across China. Here's what you need to know
The United Nations on Monday urged Chinese authorities to guarantee people’s “right
to demonstrate peacefully,” Secretary General spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said
at a daily briefing.
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Britain’s Foreign
Secretary
JamesC Cleverly
said
China’s ruling Communist
should
Full Party
coverage
“take notice” of the protests.
“Protests against the Chinese government are rare. And so when they do happen, I
think it’s worth us taking note, but more importantly, I think it’s incumbent on the
Chinese government to take notice of its own people,” Cleverly told reporters.
Throughout the weekend, censors moved swiftly to scrub videos and photos of the
protests from the Chinese internet, though the startling images made headlines
worldwide.
In online commentaries, Chinese state media made no mention of the protests,
instead focusing on the strengths of Beijing’s anti-Covid policies, emphasizing they
were both “scientific and effective.”
But to many protesters, the demonstrations are about much more than Covid – they’re
bringing together many liberal-minded young people whose attempts to speak out
might otherwise be thwarted by strict online censorship.
A Shanghai resident in their 20s who took part in the candlelight vigil in the early
hours of Sunday said they were greeted by other young people holding white papers,
flowers and shouting “want freedom” as they walked toward the makeshift memorial.
“My friends and I have all experienced Shanghai’s lockdown, and the so-called ‘iron
fist’ (of the state) has fallen on all of us,” they told CNN, “That night, I felt that I could
finally do something. I couldn’t sit still, I had to go.”
They broke into tears quietly in the crowd as the chants demanding freedom grew
louder.
“At that moment, I felt I’m not alone,” they said. “I realized that I’m not the only one
who thinks this way.”
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AP
Shanghai residents held a candlelight vigil to mourn the victims of the Xinjiang fire on November 26.
Political dissent
In some cases, the protests have taken on an even more defiant tone and openly
called for political change.
During the first night of the demonstrations in Shanghai, a crowd shouted “Step
down, Xi Jinping! Step down, Communist Party!” in an unprecedented, direct
challenge to the top leader. On Sunday night, some protesters again chanted for the
removal of Xi.
In Chengdu, the protesters did not name Xi, but their message was hard to miss.
“Opposition to dictatorship!” chanted hundreds of people packing the bustling river
banks in a popular food and shopping district on Sunday evening, according to videos
and a participant.
“We don’t want lifelong rulers. We don’t want emperors!” they shouted in a thinly
veiled reference to the Chinese leader, who last month began a norm-shattering third
term in office.
According to the participant, the crowd also protested against revisions to the party
charter and the state constitution – which enabled Xi to further cement his hold on
power and scrap presidential term limits.
Much like in Shanghai, the gathering started as a small candlelight vigil for people
killed in the fire in Urumqi on Thursday.
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Obtained by CNN
Demonstrators in Chengdu held a candlelight vigil for the victims of the Xinjiang fire on November 27.
But as more people gathered, the vigil turned into a louder arena to air political
grievances.
“Everyone started shouting these slogans very naturally,” the participant said. “It is so
rare that we have such a large-scale gathering and demonstration. The words of
mourning didn’t feel enough, and we had to shout out some words that we want to
say.”
To her, the experience of suffocating censorship inevitably fuels desire for
“institutional and spiritual freedom,” and mourning the victims and demanding
democracy and freedom are two “inseparable” things.
“We all know that the reason why we have to keep undergoing lockdowns and Covid
tests is that this is a political movement, not a scientific and logical response of
epidemic prevention,” she said. “That’s why we have more political demands other
than lifting lockdowns.”
The Chengdu protester said she felt encouraged by the wave of demonstrations
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sweeping the country.
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“It turns out there are so many people who are wide awake,” she said. “I feel like I can
see a glimmer of light coming through ahead.”
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