China COVID Protest Video: The Most Dramatic Viral Videos

Dramatic videos have emerged of COVID protests in China, including some that appear to show government officials have welded apartment doors shut to keep people inside.

Other videos show protesters clashing with hazmat-suit wearing officials as citizens protest continued lockdowns to combat rising cases of COVID-19.

You can see some of the most dramatic videos throughout this article. They have had hundreds of thousands, and even millions, of views on social media.

Some videos show detention centers. Others show locked doors. Others showed protesters ripping down barricades in Wuhan.

Some showed protesters demanding other freedoms.

Some videos showed what appeared to be disinfectant being sprayed on Chinese cities. One video showed a BBC journalist being dragged to the ground.

Here’s what you need to know:

The Protests Are Fueled by ‘Zero COVID’ Lockdowns & Requirements

According to the Associated Press, the protesters are “angered by strict anti-virus measures” and have even called for the Chinese leader Xi Jinping to resign, which is an unheard of action in the totalitarian state.

The AP reported that those measures include a “zero COVID” approach that “has suspended access to neighborhoods for weeks at a time” and includes daily virus tests. According to BBC, China is the last of the major world “economies” to have a zero-Covid policy.

In Shanghai, protesters clashed with police, who used pepper spray to quell the protests, the AP reported, adding that some protesters were “driven away in a bus” after being arrested.

The AP reported that the protests ignited on Friday, November 25, 2022, and are now occurring in Beijing and on college campuses throughout China.

According to CNN, the Chinese markets tanked because of the protests, which are very rare.

A Fire in Urumqi Has Escalated Tensions

A fire in the City of Urumqi has escalated the dissent, according to the AP, which reported that at least 10 people died in the blaze. Some videos showed this apartment fire.

Officials were accused of locking doors, preventing people from escaping. Officials deny this, BBC reported, but they are starting to loosen the COVID restrictions as a result.

According to CNBC, COVID lockdowns had occurred in that city for months, although the cause of the fire is not clear.

Chinese COVID Vaccines Are Not as Effective Against the Virus

China has reported a record number of COVID infection in recent days, according to Axios. The site reported that COVID vaccines in China are not as effective as those in the West, and the government is worried that easing lockdowns could overwhelm the healthcare system.

In Beijing, the number of COVID cases has nearly doubled over the weekend of November 26-27, 2022, Bloomberg reported.

BBC reported that Chinese vaccination rates are low compared to other countries.

Chinese citizens have expressed upset on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, even though it is strictly monitored by the government, according to the BBC.

“The unlimited trust we gave the government at the beginning did not change their conscience. The life, safety and basic demands of the people are deaf to them,” one person wrote, according to BBC.

READ NEXT: The University of Idaho Students Who Were Murdered in Moscow, Idaho