Protest held at iPhone factory in China against Covid restrictions

Beijing: As the number of Coronavirus infections in China rises again, the ruling communist regime has tightened restrictions against the epidemic. There has been a strong reaction from the people against these strict restrictions of the ruling regime. Besides, workers protested against the Corona restrictions at the world’s largest iPhone factory in Zhengzhou. The workers are said to have made demands for the relaxation of restrictions and additional payment. The impact of China’s ‘Zero Covid Policy’ against the Corona epidemic has also been felt globally. The IMF has advised China to change its strict policy regarding Corona.

The number of corona patients in China has been increasing for the past few days. Last Friday, more than 25 thousand patients were found in China. On Tuesday, the number of patients crossed 29 thousand and this increase was seen in major cities, including the capital Beijing. As the number of patients continues to rise despite the lockdown in various cities over the last few weeks, the Chinese system’s challenge has intensified. Different subtypes of the ‘Omicron’ variant of Corona have been found in China and some types are also said to have come here from abroad.

Given this background, the ruling communist regime emphasises the ‘Zero Covid Policy’ and is being implemented more strictly. But the Chinese people are fed up with the restrictions imposed due to Corona and there is an outbreak of discontent against the government in various parts. Photographs of protests in the city of Zhengzhou and Guangzhou, as well as in Tibet, were released last month. There were also reports of hundreds of employees fleeing the iPhone factory in Zhengzhou. In this same factory, there has been an outbreak of workers’ displeasure.

Moreover, fed up with the restrictions, the workers started a protest on Wednesday, shouting slogans. It included demands related to the relaxation of restrictions, provision of more facilities during the Corona period and wages. It has also come to light that there was an altercation between the workers and the security guards. The factory protests in the industrial hub city of Zhengzhou are said to be an angry reaction to restrictions imposed by the Communist regime. Apart from the people of China, there are voices of displeasure against the ‘Zero Covid Policy’ at the global level.

Although implementing the zero covid policy is quick and fast, the time to impose restrictions is taking longer due to new types of Corona and laxity in vaccination. These effects are seen in product demand, investment, and housing. In taking the next steps, China needs to change its policies regarding Corona. China should make more preparations and increase the speed of vaccination’, advised Geeta Gopinath, a senior official of the Ministry of Finance.

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