Akash Dubey

Mr. Gigl

US History II

23 December 2022

Current Events #3 - Protests in China over the effects of the Zero-COVID Policy

Summary:        

        Over the past couple of weeks, there have been protests in China about the government’s “zero-COVID” policy. While the policy was successful in limiting COVID deaths to around 16,000, it had negative effects on the economy, daily life, and food supplies for citizens in locked-down regions. This policy was not popular with the people and public sentiment only became worse as the pandemic and the lockdowns continued. (VOA News, 2022) As a result, people have begun to resist the government, which is something that is uncommon in China. Although there is no single cause for these protests, the fire in an apartment building in Urumqi exacerbated the unrest and is the popular reason for the unrest: some believe that the lockdown prevented emergency services from responding to the fire and the blaze could have been prevented. (de Guzman, 2022) Additionally, the lockdowns had adverse economic effects; For example, the FoxConn iPhone factory in Zhengzhou was forced to shut down due to the virus’s spread, confining thousands of workers in the factory. Due to this public and economic pressure, Xi Jinping has decided to start reversing his zero-COVID, but it is causing a significant rise in cases and straining their healthcare system. Although the world is better equipped to deal with COVID now compared to 2020, China’s government will need to carefully manage its reopening strategy to prevent significant damage to its people and economy. (Ioanes, 2023)

Significance:

        This is an important event for the entire world because China is an economic powerhouse today and an economic slowdown there will affect the entire world. The removal of restrictions, which have only delayed the pandemic in China, is likely to cause a large wave of cases in the country. Currently, China’s factory activity is expected to contract this year as a result of the COVID wave hitting the country. In the short term, China’s economy will take a beating and strain the global supply chain, but in the long run, China is predicted to economically prosper without heavy COVID restrictions impacting factories or ports. (Yuen, 2022) The impact of the short-term contraction is yet to be seen, but it will have a big impact on global markets. Additionally, the removal of restrictions will also have an impact on global health because the huge population of China will be like a breeding ground for new variants of the virus. Aside from the damage that the virus will wreak in China, the virus could cause damage to other countries which are trying to get closer to normalcy: meaning, the world might lock down again if there is a more virulent new variant. In addition to the concerns about global health, this situation also brings to light the domestic problems China is facing. China has portrayed itself as a role model for other countries in its handling of the virus even though it mishandled the virus initially and has been accused of miscounting cases and deaths. Additionally, in an attempt to boast about its handling of the virus, the government granted only the use of Chinese vaccines, which are less effective than the Western ones, to its citizens. These actions, along with many others, led to mistrust of the government and only time will tell what happens to China’s government from here. (Mark, 2022)

Vocabulary:

exacerbate (n) - make (a problem, bad situation, or negative feeling) worse.

lockdown (n) - a state or period in which movement within or access to an area is restricted in the interests of public safety or health.

virulent (adj) - (of a disease or poison) extremely severe or harmful in its effects.

Zero-COVID (n) - a public health policy that has been implemented by some countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. A strategy "of control and maximum suppression".

References

de Guzman, C. (2022, November 28). What to Know About the Zero-COVID Protests in China. TIME. Retrieved January 2, 2023, from https://time.com/6237068/china-zero-covid-protests/

Ioanes, E. (2023, January 1). Xi Jinping has abandoned zero-Covid. What happens now? Vox. Retrieved January 2, 2023, from https://www.vox.com/coronavirus-covid19/2023/1/1/23532942/xi-jinping-china-zero-covid-travel

Jingnan, H. (2022, December 20). China's end to 'zero-COVID' has led to a rush of misinformation. NPR. Retrieved January 2, 2023, from https://www.npr.org/2022/12/20/1143413739/confusion-and-falsehoods-spread-as-china-reverses-its-zero-covid-policy

Mark, J. (2022, May 11). China's faltering "zero COVID" policy: Politics in command, economy in reverse. Atlantic Council. Retrieved January 2, 2023, from https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-research-reports/report/chinas-faltering-zero-covid-policy-politics-in-command-economy-in-reverse/

VOA News. (2022, November 28). What Is China's 'Zero-COVID' Policy? What Is China's 'Zero-COVID' Policy? Retrieved January 2, 2023, from https://www.voanews.com/a/what-is-china-s-zero-covid-policy-/6854291.html

Yuen, V. (2022, December 29). China reopening earlier than expected could hit supply chains in the short term, but boost growth in 2023. CNBC. Retrieved January 2, 2023, from https://www.cnbc.com/2022/12/29/what-chinas-earlier-reopening-means-for-markets.html