China: Protests against strict anti-covid measures grow

Following the Chinese government’s decision to extend the lockdown following an increase in new Covid-19 cases, hundreds of students at Beijing’s Tsinghua University demonstrated today against the restrictions. This is not the first expression of rejection of anti-covid measures, last night citizens also protested in different Chinese cities such as Shanghai and Beijing University.” Several students began unfurling banners at the entrance to the canteen. Then more and more people joined. Currently there are between 200 and 300 people,” said one student. She said one student waved a blank sheet of paper — a gesture that became a symbolic protest against censorship in China — and other women joined her.
At the rallies, students demand “Democracy and the rule of law, freedom of expression!”, sing the anthem, and say “no to the tests, we want food”. They are also calling for the resignation of President Xi Jinping, who was re-elected for the third time in October. Despite attempts by police to disperse protesters with pepper spray, the students have not settled. In fact, the opposite scenario occurred: the crowd shouted and filmed security forces with their cell phones, according to another witness. While the government announced a return to stricter measures last week when for the first time in six months a person died from Covid and new daily cases exceeded 30,000, the trigger came on Friday when 10 people died in an apartment that caught fire in the city of Urumqi. It is believed that due to the restrictions, the victims were unable to escape and firefighters were slow to arrive. 
Urumqi authorities denied reports that the gates had been sealed, adding that the area had been declared low-risk so people could leave. However, the unfortunate comment of a member of the Government caused the claims, which until then were through social networks, to be transferred to the streets. The man had said residents “had no knowledge or ability to rescue themselves in time.” 

Original source in Spanish