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Protests in China on lockdown are halted as police fill the streets.

As temperatures plummeted far below freezing on Tuesday in Beijing, there were no reports of any fresh demonstrations against the government’s harsh anti-pandemic efforts due to the presence of heavily armed police. It was also said to be quiet in Shanghai, Nanjing, and other locations where internet appeals for gatherings had been made.

Over the weekend, protests over China’s extraordinarily severe anti-virus tactics expanded to numerous cities, marking the largest display of anti-Communist sentiment in decades. Authorities relaxed a few rules, ostensibly to appease the populace, but they showed no evidence of changing course with regard to their bigger coronavirus policy, and observers anticipate that they will soon put an end to any criticism.

An observer reported seeing police conducting sporadic phone checks at the Shanghai People’s Square metro station on Monday night. He was on his way to a scheduled demonstration near the station, which he could not locate, so he chose not to provide his identity for fear of retaliation.

On Monday, some 50 mainland Chinese students performed at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and several of them held candles in solidarity of those in mainland cities who protested against the limitations that have forced millions of people to live in their houses. The students screamed, “No PCR tests but freedom!” and “Oppose tyranny, don’t be slaves!” while concealing their faces to prevent state reprisal.

The demonstration, along with another one of a similar kind elsewhere in Hong Kong, was the largest to take place there in more than a year due to regulations put in place to stifle the pro-democracy movement in the territory, which is Chinese but has a different legal system from the mainland.

James Cai, 29, from Shanghai, joined a demonstration in Hong Kong and stated, “I’ve wanted to speak out for a long time, but I didn’t have the opportunity to,” while holding up a piece of white paper as a sign of resistance against the governing party’s ubiquitous censorship. “If mainlanders can’t stand it any longer, I can’t either,” she said.

It was unclear how many people had been held since mainland demonstrations started on Friday, which were incited by rage over the deaths of 10 people in a fire in the city of Urumqi in the region’s northwest. Angering comments were made online regarding whether barred doors or other anti-virus measures prevented firemen or victims from fleeing. Although the authorities denied it, the event served as a focal point for popular discontent with the regulations.

Some local officials loosened restrictions on Monday, but they made no mention of the demonstrations, the criticism of Xi, or the fire.

Beijing’s municipal administration said that it will no longer erect fences to prevent people from entering housing complexes where illnesses are discovered.

According to the official China News Service, Wang Daguang, a municipal official in charge of epidemic prevention, said that passageways “must stay free for medical transit, emergency escapes, and rescues.”

There will no longer be a need for all citizens to submit to mass testing, according to Guangzhou, the largest hot spot in China’s most recent wave of illnesses.

Ambassador Nicholas Burns and other American diplomats have “frequently voiced our concerns on many of these problems directly,” the U.S. Embassy cautioned locals to be ready for anything.

The Embassy issued a statement on Monday encouraging all American citizens to stockpile a 14-day supply of food, water, and medicine for themselves and any family members.

Lockdowns were mentioned by White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby in Washington, who said that “clearly, there are folks in China who — that have — have worries about it.”

At a briefing on Monday, Kirby said, “And they’re protesting that, and we think they should be entitled to do so peacefully.”

Markets and other establishments in regions assessed to be at low risk of infection will reopen this week, according to announcements made by the cities of Urumqi, where the fire happened, and another in the Xinjiang region of northwest China. Public bus service will also restart.

China’s case counts have remained lower than those of the United States and other major nations because to “Zero COVID,” which strives to isolate every sick individual. But when some residents in certain regions have been confined to their homes for as long as four months and complain of having unreliable access to food and medical supplies, tolerance for the restrictions has waned.

Last month, the governing party made a commitment to change quarantine and other “20 Guidelines” regulations in order to lessen disturbance. However, an increase in illnesses has forced towns to strengthen security.

After breaking records the previous days, the number of daily cases decreased marginally to 38,421 on Tuesday. 34,860 of them were comprised of individuals who had no symptoms.

The People’s Daily, the newspaper of the governing party, urged the efficient implementation of its anti-virus campaign, suggesting that Xi’s administration had no intention of reversing course.

The preventive and control strategy has “completely shown that each version has survived the test of practice,” according to facts, a People’s Daily analyst stated.

Do Not Fear banners were set up by demonstrators at Chinese University in Hong Kong. Never Forget. Do Not Forgive,” and sung songs from the musical “Les Miserables,” including “Do You Hear the People Sing?” The majority of them covered their faces with blank, white paper.

A 24-year-old mainland student who will only provide her first name as G out of concern for reprisals stated, “I want to express my solidarity.” “I am concerned about things that I previously was unable to learn about.”

University security officers captured the event on camera, but no police officers could be seen.

About four dozen protesters held blank pieces of paper and flowers in what they claimed to be a show of mourning for the Urumqi fire victims and other people who have perished as a result of “zero COVID” policies at a gathering in the Central business district.

Police surrounded the protesters, who stood apart in small groups to comply with pandemic regulations that prohibit gatherings of more than 12 people. Participants’ identity information was taken by the police, but no one was detained.

Since China launched a campaign to stifle a pro-democracy movement in 2019, Hong Kong has tightened security controls and reduced Western-style civil liberties. The territory employs a distinct anti-virus plan from the mainland.

John Lee, the chief executive of Hong Kong, is a staunch supporter of law and order who oversaw the suppression of protesters, including those on college campuses.

Both the Hong Kong government and the State Council, China’s Cabinet, released statements on Monday promising to uphold public order and the National Security Law’s authority, which gives authorities broad authority to charge protesters with crimes like sedition.

According to witnesses and videos posted on social media, protests also took place over the weekend in Nanjing in the east, Chengdu and Chongqing in the southwest, and Guangzhou near Hong Kong. Police and residents in Guangzhou have previously engaged in violent altercations over quarantines.

However, some protesters have directed their rage at Xi, China’s most powerful leader since at least the 1980s. Most protesters have complained about excessive restrictions. Xi Jinping! was chanted by a crowd in Shanghai on Saturday, according to a video that The Associated Press verified. Resign now, CCP! Step aside!

According to the British Broadcasting Corporation, one of its reporters was handcuffed, beaten, and detained by Shanghai police for several hours before being released.

The BBC criticized what it claimed was the Chinese government’s justification for detaining its reporter—that he was done so in order to keep him from catching the coronavirus from the crowd. The broadcaster issued a statement saying, “We do not consider this a credible explanation.

Zhao Lijian, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, claimed that the BBC reporter “didn’t voluntarily present” his press credentials and failed to identify himself.

Zhao advised foreign journalists to consciously abide by Chinese laws and regulations.

Swiss broadcaster RTS reported that a cameraman and a correspondent were detained while conducting a live broadcast but were soon released. An AP reporter was taken into custody but later released.

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