Large protests erupted on Wednesday at the world's largest iPhone manufacturing plant in China.
It is the property of the Taiwanese subcontractor Foxconn.
The factory is located in Zhengzhou, central Henan Province.
Images posted on various social networks show in particular a crowd of daytime workers parading in a street, some facing a row of people in white full protective suits and riot police.
An extract from a video broadcast live shows, at night, dozens of workers shouting "Let's defend our rights!"
in front of rows of police and a police vehicle with flashing lights.
Amid stringent #Covid_19 restrictions, protests break out at Foxconn's largest iPhone factory in #China |
#BreakingNews pic.twitter.com/urB4oGL2VA
— Mirror Now (@MirrorNow) November 23, 2022
Other images show a worker placing a metal barrier on the floor, while the author of the video shouts "they're charging!"
» and « tear gas canisters!
".
A photo taken during the day shows the charred remains of a portal, apparently burned during the night.
The hashtag #Foxconnriots appears to be censored on Chinese social media.
A few posts referring to the protests, however, remain online.
Painful management of Covid-19
Foxconn is a large group that assembles electronic products for many international brands.
The Taiwanese company, Apple's main subcontractor, has faced an increase in Covid-19 cases in recent months at its huge site in Zhengzhou, the largest iPhone factory in the world.
The complex employs more than 200,000 people, generally housed on site.
Read alsoTuesday, record number of Covid-19 cases in Beijing: schools and restaurants closed, widespread telework
Foxconn had decided to confine the site with the workers inside.
But hundreds of panicked workers then fled on foot.
The Taiwanese group is the largest private sector employer in China.
It employs more than a million people across the country, spread across some 30 factories and research institutes.
Foxconn did not immediately respond to a request for comment.