A Lockdown for Xi, a Reopening for COVID
Protesters hold up sheets of white paper, which symbolizes the censorship of the Chinese government. Courtesy of Ng Han Guan, AP Photo.
Last month, China had one of its largest demonstrations since the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. The Zero-COVID policy adopted by Chinese President Xi Jinping served as a catalyst for the large-scale protests, as its intensive lockdowns brought dissent from citizens who have continuously faced mass control from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). A fire at an apartment in Urumqi that killed ten people created a full-blown rebellion, with protesters believing that the lockdowns prevented residents from evacuating. The police answered by forcibly sending the protestors home, checking their phone histories, and patrolling public spaces. The demonstrations have since died down as the CCP suddenly ended their Zero-COVID policy on December 7th, and life in China has seemingly come back to normal.
However, the consequences of the three-year-long plan and its reversal in such a short time must not be overlooked. To examine what is to come, we must revisit the Zero-COVID policy and its connection to Xi. China started its complete lockdowns from apartment blocks to even cities when COVID-19 first spread in Wuhan in 2019. 11 million people were confined to their homes, a lockdown that has been the model for China ever since.
Xi has used his policy as a platform for winning a third term, claiming that he “prioritized the people and their lives above all else.” Meanwhile, the people suffered food shortages and inaccessibility to necessities. A man who experienced the lockdowns stated that whenever a household member tested positive, their house door was locked, confining every family member with the patient. Even residences that tested negative had devices installed on front doors that alerted authorities when residents tried to leave their homes. If deaths occurred from the quarantine, officials carrying out Xi’s policy blamed the individuals for their deaths. For instance, the head of the Urumqi City Fire Rescue Department responded to the aforementioned Urumqi fire that “some residents' abilities to rescue themselves were too weak.” The Zero-COVID policy must be blamed on Xi as he muzzled dissent against his rule. Although the number of coronavirus cases has plateaued for the majority of 2022, it is possible that the CCP has altered the statistics, and the plan eventually fell through, with record numbers of active cases in mainland China.
Courtesy of Worldometer.
At the time of writing, China has rolled back on COVID testing, reporting, and quarantining. Although the virus is still spreading, the Chinese state media outlet Xinhua News Agency has reflected on the “win” against the pandemic. However, experts speculate that Beijing has responded to the public outcry selfishly, without genuine care for the people. Yale law professor Taisu Zhang theorizes that the Chinese government lifted the restrictions to place the blame on the people if the country faces another wave of COVID-related deaths. Ultimately, the chants calling for Xi to step down were ignored, and the CCP backed off as citizens had to fend for themselves. The People’s Republic of China does not listen to its people.
Travelers cross between Hong Kong and China as borders reopen. Courtesy of Bertha Wang, AP Photo.
Even with the return to normalcy, the situation can turn unfavorable for citizens in China and other countries. International traveling from China opened on Jan. 8, which can open doors for mass infection not just in China, but around the world. People from China, which is not publishing data on COVID infections and deaths daily, can be allowed to visit any country very soon. The approaching Lunar New Year, which is a holiday that has individuals coming back home, can increase infections among Chinese people in different countries. Once they return to the nation they were living in, it can cause COVID numbers to soar.
It is no surprise that the lack of an approach for safe traveling for visitors and inhabitants of the country from China reflects its rescinding of the Zero-COVID policy. The responsibility to keep COVID cases low is on the shoulders of nearby countries, including Korea. Han Duck-soo, the South Korean Prime Minister, has stated that it is mandatory for travelers from China to have proof of a negative test before boarding a plane en route to the nation. They will also be required to have a PCR test on the first day of arrival. Although COVID may not be imported into Korea or other countries enmasse, the irresponsibility of the nation that has birthed a pandemic that has swept the world is astonishing. Unfortunately, the international community has to brace for another potential wave of the virus that has taken loved ones, restricted movement, and crushed regular life for three years.