Quixplained: China’s ‘Zero-Covid’ and anti-Xi Jinping protests

On the night of November 26, a sizeable crowd gathered to observe an all-night candlelight vigil on Shanghai’s Urumqi Middle Road, named after the Uyghur city of Urumqi in the troubled northwestern province of Xinjiang. The road, one of Shanghai’s busiest and located in the city’s elite Xuhui and Jinganqu districts, had never seen an anti-government protest before. The following evening, crowds spilt out in the streets of Urumqi, raising slogans demanding an end to the lockdown.

So, why are the people protesting in China? How is it linked to President Xi Jinping government’s ‘Zero Covid’ policy? Let’s take a look.

Why are people protesting in China? What is ‘Zero Covid’? What’s the trigger now? The government response