Recent Protests in China Could Mean More Then Just Covid Policy Changes
December 14, 2022
http://https://time.com/6238800/china-protests-reveal-about-the-country/
https://thediplomat.com/2022/11/the-real-importance-of-chinas-zero-covid-protests/
China has recently been in the public eye for the most recent round of protests over their strict COVID-19 restrictions. After the pandemic began, China took a major economic hit as cases emerged and businesses were forced to close. According to an article by the Guardian in 2020, China had reported over 81,000 cases of the virus in the year 2019 alone. The Chinese government voted on a bill that would lax their Covid policies, yet the president shut down the program as he believes the zero covid policy works better. In November of this year protests began to go against the lack of change.
The major importance of these protests is what they mean for China as a whole.China has been a communist country since 1949, after Communists overtook the countries’ leaders. These recent protests have revealed major cracks in the appearance of the “perfection” of communism in the country. The protests started as a way to tell the government that the people want more freedoms, but it has snowballed into a statement of government reform. China hasn’t seen protests this big in over 30 years and the pure unity adds to the importance of these.
People are said to have come from all around the country for these protests.
Regardless of cultures, family background, or even social background people have come together for these. These protests aren’t just from small counties, these spread over the entire country. Minxin Pei told PBS that while there is no way to know for certain how a relaxation in the restrictions would affect the people, it is likely that cases would likely surge for both hospitalization and fatalities. One of the major problems is that while China has vaccines and treatments, they have been proven to be less effective than those in more western countries. China continues to ban these vaccines.
Jaden Herzog, a Freshman at McCracken County High School voiced her thoughts on the current situation in China. Herzog expressed that she was not a supporter of communism, and believes the restrictions it brings are unbelievable. “You don’t stand up to the government in China. I’m sure China is gonna strip these protestors of their voice.” She was additionally asked what exactly she had heard about the protests. “Not much honestly, I have heard people are boycotting.” She additionally stated ” I can see it going so bad, because of the way their government is.” A major question that has been floating is on how this will affect the rest of the world. “I feel like the rest of the world will want to help the people of China, but they won’t do anything because they don’t want to start anything with China.”
The recent protests in China are slowly becoming more for political change than just COVID protocol as previously stated. According to The Diplomat, protestors could be heard chanting “We don’t want dictatorship, we don’t want a personality cult!” As it stands, the citizens of China stand on apposing sides from the government in a way not seen in almost three decades. Many wonder if this could be the straw that broke the camel’s back.
