A version of this story appeared in CNN’s Meanwhile in China, a thrice-weekly update exploring what you need to know about the country’s rise and its impact on world. Sign up here.
CNN
—
For the first time in decades, thousands of people have challenge the Chinese government to protest at universities and on the streets of major cities, demanding to be liberated not only from Covid’s ongoing tests and lockdownbut strict censorship and the Communist Party’s grip on every aspect of life.
Across the country, “want to be free” has become a rallying cry for wave of protest mainly led by the younger generation, some are too young to engage in public dissident activities against the previous government.
“Give me freedom or give me death!” hundreds of screaming crowds in several cities, according to videos that went viral online, as vigils to mark the deaths of at least 10 people in fire in Xinjiang focused on political protests.
Videos that went viral online appeared to show China’s strict no-Covid policy that initially prevented emergency workers from accessing the scene, angering people across the country who had suffered. three years of different Covid control.
Some protesters chanted for freedom of 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. Guangzhou to the south and Chengdu to the west.
CNN verified the protests in 16 locations, with reports of others being held in dozens of other cities and universities across the country.
Protesters take to the streets in Hong Kong to show solidarity with the mainland
While protests in some parts of China appear to have largely dissipated over the weekend, some have met stronger response from the authorities – and security has been tightened across cities in a country as authorities have extensive surveillance and security capabilities.
In Beijing, the massive police presence was evident on Monday evening, a day after protests broke out there. Police cars, many parked with flashing lights, line the eerily quiet streets across parts of the capital, including near Liangmaqiao in the city’s central Chaoyang district, where a mob Crowds of protesters gathered on Sunday night.
Asked on Monday whether “widespread expressions of anger and frustration” seen across the country could lead China to abandon its Covid-free approach, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said. has rejected the dissident proposals.
“What you mention doesn’t reflect what really happened,” said spokesman Zhao Lijian, who added that authorities had “made adjustments” to their Covid policies. based on “facts on the spot”.
“We believe that with the leadership of the Communist Party of China and the Chinese people, our fight against Covid-19 will be successful,” he said.
In a symbolic protest against ever-tightening censorship, young protesters across China held up blank sheets of paper – a metaphor for the countless articles critical, news news and outspoken social media accounts have been removed from the internet.
“I think in a just society, no one should be accused of speaking out. There shouldn’t be just one voice in our society – we need many different voices,” a Beijing protester told CNN in the early hours of Monday as he marched down the Third Ring Road. of the city with a stack of thin white A4 paper.
“I hope in the future I will no longer hold a blank sheet of paper for what I really want to say,” said the protester, who CNN did not name due to concerns about the consequences of speaking out.
During a daily press conference, the United Nations on Monday called on Chinese authorities to ensure the people’s “right to protest peacefully,” said a spokesman for UN Secretary-General Stephane Dujarric.
British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said China’s ruling Communist Party should “pay attention” to the protests.
“Protests against the Chinese government are rare. And so when they happen, I think we should take note, but more importantly, I think the Chinese government has a responsibility to pay attention to its people,” Cleverly told reporters.
Over the course of the weekend, censors quickly removed videos and photos of the protests from the Chinese internet, though the startling images made headlines around the world.
In online commentary, Chinese state media did not mention the protests, instead focusing on the strengths of Beijing’s anti-Covid policy, emphasizing them as “scientific and effective”. fruit”.
But for many protesters, the protests are far more important than Covid – they bring together many young liberals whose efforts to speak out can be stymied by online censorship. strict line.
A Shanghai resident in his 20s who attended a candlelight vigil in the early hours of Sunday said they were greeted by other young people holding white papers and flowers and shouting “want to be free” as they walked home. the temporary memorial side.
“My friends and I have all been through Shanghai’s lockdown, and the so-called ‘iron fist’ (of the state) fell on all of us,” they told CNN, “that night, I I feel like I can finally do something. I can’t sit still, I have to go.”
They quietly burst into tears in the midst of the crowd as the chants for freedom grew louder.
They say, “At that time, I felt I was not alone. “I realized that I’m not the only one who thinks this way.”
In some cases, the protests took on an even more defiant tone and openly called for political change.
On the first night of protests in Shanghai, a crowd shouted “Xi Jinping step down! Retreat, Communist Party!” in an unprecedented direct challenge to the top leader. On Sunday night, some protesters again chanted for Xi’s removal.
In Chengdu, the protesters did not name Xi, but their message was hard to miss. “Opposition to dictatorship!” According to the video and one participant, hundreds chanted the bustling waterfronts in a popular shopping and food court on Sunday night.
“We don’t want lifelong rulers. We don’t want the emperor!” they shouted in reference to the Chinese leader, who last month began his third rule-breaking term.
According to participants, the crowd also opposed the revision of the party charter and state constitution that would allow Xi to further consolidate his power and remove presidential term limits.
Like in Shanghai, the gathering began with a small candlelight vigil for those killed in the fire in Urumqi on Thursday.
But as more people gathered, the vigil became a larger arena for expressing political grievances.
“People started chanting these slogans very naturally,” said the participant. “It is rare that we have such a large-scale gathering and demonstration. Words of mourning felt inadequate, and we had to shout the words we wanted to say.”
For her, the experience of suffocating censorship certainly fosters a desire for “institutional and spiritual freedom”, while mourning the victims and demanding democracy and freedom are “inseparable”. leave”.
“We all know that the reason why we have to continue to blockade and test for Covid is because this is a political movement, not a scientific and rational response to epidemic prevention,” she said. . “That’s why we have more political demands than lifting the lockdown.”
A protester in Chengdu said she is encouraged by the wave of protests sweeping across the country.
“It turns out there are a lot of people who are very sober,” she said. “I feel like I can see a glimmer of light ahead.”
