As the number of corona infections continues to soar in China, protests against the government’s strict pandemic policy are increasing. Weekend demonstrations in many cities continued on Monday evening. Dozens of protesters were arrested. Images circulated on social media of people being taken away and crammed into buses. The authorities are also taking action against the reporting of the events. A BBC reporter was arrested in Shanghai on Sunday.
“The BBC is deeply concerned about the treatment of our journalist Ed Lawrence, who was arrested and handcuffed while covering the Shanghai protests,” said a British broadcaster spokesman. Ed Lawrence was beaten and kicked by police officers upon his arrest, even though he was accredited as a journalist. He was not released until hours later. There has been no official explanation or apology for the incident from the Chinese authorities, the spokesman said.
Upon arrest, the reporter yelled, “Call the consulate!”
That the police claimed on release that Lawrence was only taken into custody to protect him from a corona infection in the crowd is “not a credible statement”. Photos and videos were posted online of a man being taken away by police, shouting for someone to call the consulate immediately. On his Twitter account, Lawrence had recently described impressions of the protests, which are highly unusual in China and were estimated to have involved several hundred people.
In the People’s Republic, the strict corona policy at the weekend led to the largest protests in decades. Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets not only in Shanghai, but also in the capital Beijing and other megacities. Cries of “Down with the Communist Party! Down with the Communist Party! Down with Xi Jinping!” Under the current head of state and party leader, the People’s Republic is pursuing a strict zero-Covid strategy that seeks to contain any local flare-ups of the virus with rigid isolation methods.
More than 40,000 new infections for the first time
But according to the country’s National Health Commission, 40,347 new cases have now been recorded, the highest number of new infections within 24 hours since the outbreak of the pandemic. The day before there were 39,791 infections. 3709 of the cases are symptomatic, 36,082 asymptomatic infections, which are counted separately in China.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
