The Chinese Communist Party
Is backing off Zero Covid so fast
It’s giving people whiplash.
But why are they doing it now?
Welcome to China Uncensored, I’m Chris Chappell.
The holidays are coming up and if you’re looking for a gift for someone you love, like
yourself, grab one of our unique West Taiwan travel posters!
You can get yours at chinauncensored.tv/merchandise.
So the Chinese Communist Party is really good at propaganda.
Like, it’s stunning.
Here’s an example.
State-run media claims China has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty.
I’m sure you’ve heard that one before.
Now that’s not true.
The Chinese Communist Party did not lift millions of people out of poverty.
Unless of course you count the people they’re responsible for killing.
Then sure, they don’t have to worry about being poor anymore.
And in case you still believe their propaganda, check out our episode, China’s Poverty Lie.
A link is in the description.
But the Communist Party has gotten respected global institutions like the World Bank to
repeat the lie.
Then Western media picked up the story because the World Bank said it.
And then you get American politicians repeating the lie as fact.
This was such an obvious game of propaganda telephone I’m surprised the lie didn’t
end with them saying “purple monkey dishwasher.”
Covid, or the CCP Virus as I call it , is another perfect example of their propaganda
prowess.
When the outbreak first began, they detained and threatened people like Dr. Li Wenliang
who tried to warn others about the virus.
It was part of a coverup so they could protect the authorities from blame and hoard medical
supplies.
They followed the science…
back to their homes so they could throw them in jail.
To control the spread in China, they locked down domestic travel to Wuhan, but actually
pushed international travel, helping the CCP virus spread around the world.
And on top of everything, there’s strong evidence the virus itself may have leaked
from a lab in Wuhan.
Over 1 million Americans have died from the CCP Virus.
Sorry.
Over 1 million Americans have been lifted out of poverty by the CCP virus.
You’d think that would have made the Communist Party look awful.
But they managed to turn it into a propaganda victory.
Thanks largely to all the money the Party pumps into the UN and WHO, China got the “experts”
to praise their coronavirus response.
“Almost all member states are praising China for what they did.
China took action massively at the epicenter, at the source of the outbreak.”
Gee, I wonder why doctors would praise the government that’s paying them tons of money
and, oh yeah… locking up doctors!
Here’s another W.H.O.
official.
“If I had COVID-19, I’d want to be treated in China.”
Wow, that aged poorly more poorly than
this “I’m a Cuomo-sexual shirt.
But at the time, American media was also pushing that message.
Here's a reporter from the New York Times interviewed on MSNBC.
“China has had enormous success in beating down its epidemic.”
He goes on for a full 5 minutes about how great China’s approach is.
The New York Times also pushed the idea that China’s Covid response bought the world
time, but the West squandered it.
They picked that up directly from Chinese state-run media.
Bought the world time, really?
Cause I thought China hoarded medical supplies while they covered it up.
The New York Times also basically threw freedom under the bus by saying China’s authoritarian
response was so worth it.
"The West may find it has to work harder to sell its vision of freedom after China has
made its model seem so attractive.”
Are these headlines serving presidential terms?
Because they’re all aging horribly.
Now I’m picking on the New York Times a bit because, well they make it easy, but this
was widespread.
Almost as much as Covid was.
The point is, the Chinese Communist Party is really good at propaganda.
Which brings me to Zero Covid.
It’s completely wrecked the Chinese economy.
And sparked the type of protests we haven’t seen in China since…well, the 1989 student
democracy protests.
Just to be clear, there are often protests in China.
But they don’t usually call for the CCP to step down.
You’d think that would have made the CCP look awful.
But let's watch as they turn this into yet another propaganda victory.
More after the break.
Welcome back.
The Chinese Communist Party had a problem.
The Zero Covid policy was a disaster.
But the Communist Party has never admitted making any mistakes.
And they aren’t about to now.
So how do you step back from the Zero Covid policy without admitting it was a mistake
in the first place?
The recent massive protests may have given the Party the answer.
Since the protest, the Communist Party has backed off some of its Zero Covid policies.
“Authorities last week announced a dramatic loosening of requirements for testing, digital
health passes, and tracking and quarantines.”
Was that a victory for protesters?
Well, if you’ve been paying any attention, you know the CCP does not care about the people,
popular opinion, and especially protesters.
Something else is going on.
Since the Party backed off on Zero Covid, there’s been a wave of Covid cases.
Nay, a tsunami of Covid cases.
Oh, hello again, New York Times.
In before this headline ages poorly.
There’s a reason for all these Covid cases.
“China’s pursuit of zero covid has resulted in a low level of natural immunity among the
public, leaving the population vulnerable.”
On top of that, Chinese officials have admitted Chinese vaccines aren’t very effective.
Wow, I’m stunned that the party that wound up “lifting 55 million people from poverty”
by killing sparrows wouldn’t be the best at strategizing.
So there is a massive spike in Covid cases throughout China.
“Beijing looks like a city in the throes of a lockdown — this time, self-imposed
by residents.”
“Medicine has also become hard to find, either at hospital clinics or at pharmacies.”
“Weibo, China’s popular social media service, was awash with people around the country sharing
news of their infections and their personal experiences with Covid.”
Because even during a massive infectious outbreak during unprecedented protests against an authoritarian
regime…
people still want to jump on social media and talk about themselves.
We really are all the same.
Hospitals are overwhelmed.
“China has 4.5 intensive care unit beds for every 100,000 people, according to government
data.”
One person even told the Washington Post, “Everyone has been saying life is going
to return to normal, but to me it’s gone from bad to worse.”
This is exactly what the Chinese Communist Party wants.
They want people to miss the lockdowns.
To say, hey things were better under Zero Covid.
If you want to know more about the current Covid surge, check out the episode we did
early this week.
I’ll put a link below.
Zero Covid couldn’t last forever.
It was destroying China’s economy.
So the Party had to back down eventually.
And when they did, they knew there would be a Covid surge.
But now, they can blame the protesters instead of their own bad policy.
“We gave you what you wanted.
And look what happened.
I guess you’ll listen to the Party next time.
And by the way, look at how you also made us have horrible infrastructure and limited
supplies.
Yup, this is all on you.”
Meanwhile, the Zero Covid policy should have shown the West that investing in a totalitarian
Communist state that can shut off the economy whenever it wants was a mistake.
But no, now that they’ve backed down on Zero Covid, it's all Chinese stocks surging
in the US.
Although as we’ve seen, I guess there are worse things from China to be surging in the
US.
Morgan Stanely has some helpful tips on where to invest in China.
Top Money Managers say buy buy buy!
I’m surprised they don’t finish their advice by saying “purple monkey dishwasher.”
So the Party gets everything it wants.
They can avoid the blame from Zero Covid, and get China’s economy humming along nicely
again.
It’s impressive, almost.
Of course the CCP’s propaganda can’t work if people are informed.
And that’s why it’s so important for you to leave a like and share these episodes with
your friends.
And as a thank you to everyone who supports the show on the crowd funding website Patreon
or the exclusive media platform Locals, I answer their questions at the end of episodes.
Today’s question comes from Sinospore on Locals.
Who says: Thanks for providing honest insight into the actions of the CCP.
Do you think that the continuous recording and sharing of videos by citizens showing
individuals and large groups standing up to authority will eventually convince CCP leaders
to modify their ideology and allow some degree of democracy?
Unfortunately, Sinospore, no I do not.
The Chinese Communist Party exists for one reason: to stay in power.
And if they allow any degree of democracy, that is a direct threat to their power.
That is a no go for them.
CCP leader Xi Jinping has talked many times about how the Soviet Union collapsed because
Gorbachev was weak and allowed political reforms.
So it’s safe to say that the Chinese Communist Party is not interested in actually listening
to protesters and giving in to their demands.
Instead they will try to do what they do best: squash the protests and turn everyone else
against the protesters.
Thanks for your question, Sinospore.
And thanks for supporting China Uncensored on Locals.
If you’re not a supporter already, join us on Locals.
For a small monthly contribution, you can chat directly with me, Matt, and Shelley,
and with other China Uncensored fans in our own social media space.
You’ll also get other cool perks—including the ability to ask me a question I can answer
on the show.
The link is below.
Once again I’m Chris Chappell, thanks for watching China Uncensored.