“Zero Covid” in China: the authorities investigate the participants in the demonstrations

Retaliation to fear?

It has been more than three days since demonstrations against the draconian “zero-Covid” policy, put in place at the start of the pandemic by Xi Jinping and never abandoned since, have been taking place in several cities in China.

And, according to the Reuters news agency, the country's authorities have begun investigations against certain participants in these protests, particularly in Beijing.

One of the people concerned said that the police had called him to ask him to go to the police station to justify himself on his activities on Sunday evening.

Another said it was his colleagues who inquired about his whereabouts when the protests were underway.

Another witness said that one of her friends was taken away by the police after a simple identity check, before finally being released a few hours later.

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This Monday, during the day, AFP journalists saw the arrest of four people, one of whom was later released.

A reporter counted 12 police cars parked within a 100m radius of Urumqi Street, the epicenter of Shanghai's protests on Sunday.

The police still very present

This Tuesday, the cities of Beijing and Shanghai remained under heavy police presence to prevent new gatherings.

Faced with the many police forces deployed by car and on foot, several demonstrations, scheduled for Monday evening, did not take place.

But some have nevertheless managed to come together, notably in Hong Kong - shaken in 2019 by pro-democracy demonstrations - where dozens of people paid tribute, at the Chinese University, to the victims of the Urumqi fire, noted the AFP.

And in Hangzhou, a city about 170 km southwest of Shanghai, small protests broke out, according to images circulating on social networks, some of which were geolocated by AFP.

Read also“Xi Jinping, resignation”: three years after the start of the pandemic, China won by anger

The Chinese communist authorities are facing the most extensive protest movement since the pro-democracy mobilizations of 1989. An extremely rare uprising, given the repression against any form of opposition to the government.

In the background, the popular fed up after nearly three years of strict zero Covid policy - with repeated confinements and now almost daily PCR tests of the inhabitants - but also deep frustrations vis-à-vis the political system Chinese.

A deadly fire last week in Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang region (northwest), was the trigger.

Health restrictions are accused of having prevented the work of the relief workers, arguments swept aside on Monday by the government.

These tensions appear as China is once again facing Covid-19 contamination, which has led to numerous confinements.

However, some easing gestures have appeared in recent days.

From this Tuesday, the inhabitants of Urumqi can once again travel by bus to do their shopping.

The city of Beijing has banned "the practice of blocking the doors of buildings in closed residential complexes", according to the Xinhua news agency.