The police presence in the streets prevented, Tuesday, November 29, any new gathering in China, two days after demonstrations against health restrictions and for more freedoms, unprecedented since 1989, while the main Chinese security body called for " repression" of "hostile forces".

The ruling Communist Party's Political and Legal Affairs Commission - which oversees law enforcement in the country - said it was "necessary to suppress the infiltration and sabotage activities of hostile forces in accordance with the law", according to the report of a meeting, broadcast by the state agency New China.

The text considers it crucial to "resolutely repress, in accordance with the law, criminal actions that seek to break the social order, and to protect social stability with determination".

>> To see: In China, Xi Jinping is pursuing his "zero Covid" policy: an unprecedented revolt?

In Beijing, the National Health Commission pledged to “accelerate the increase in the vaccination rate for people over 80 and continue to increase the vaccination rate for people aged 60 to 79. year".

The insufficient rate of vaccination in China, particularly among the elderly, is one of the arguments put forward by the government to justify its strict health policy, with repeated confinements, quarantines on arrival from abroad and tests quasi - daily newspapers for the population.

In force for almost three years, this policy was the target of demonstrations this weekend in several cities, the most widespread protest movement since the pro-democracy mobilizations repressed in blood in 1989.

The spark of the Urumqi fire

In the background also, deep frustrations vis-à-vis the political system as shown by the slogans chanted by the crowd, some demanding the resignation of President Xi Jinping and the departure of the Communist Party in power.

The trigger: a fatal fire last week in Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang region.

Health restrictions are accused of having prevented the work of the relief workers, arguments swept away by the government on Monday.

After a turbulent weekend, the large police deployment in the country's major cities seemed to have deterred protesters on Tuesday, according to AFP journalists in Beijing and Shanghai.

>> To see: Historical demonstrations in China: "It's a fed up with the population"

In Beijing, AFP reporters saw a few police vehicles but no protesters at the crossroads near the Asian Games Village where a protest had been planned.

The freezing temperatures of -9°C had undoubtedly contributed to discourage any new gathering.

Participants in the weekend protests in the Chinese capital told AFP on Monday that they had received phone calls from police asking about their whereabouts.

Frustration with the “zero Covid” policy nevertheless remained palpable.

“The policy (zero Covid) is really too strict,” a 17-year-old passerby, who wished to remain anonymous, told AFP in Shanghai.

"It kills more people than the Covid".

A few gestures of relaxation

Some, however, managed to gather on Tuesday evening, notably in Hong Kong – shaken in 2019 by pro-democracy demonstrations – where dozens of people paid tribute, at the Chinese University, to the victims of the fire of Urumqi, found AFP.

In the nearby city of Shenzhen, mainland China, witnesses told AFP they observed a heavy police presence in the center after rumors on social media of calls for demonstrations, with some 150 police officers and dozens of vans in the Huaqiangbei district.

The authorities' strict control over information and health restrictions on travel within the country make it difficult to estimate the total number of protesters over the weekend.

But such a widespread uprising is extremely rare in China, given the crackdown on any form of opposition to the government.

If Beijing is maintaining its strict anti-Covid policy for the moment, a few gestures of relaxation have appeared in recent days.

In Urumqi on Tuesday, residents could once again travel by bus to do their shopping, after weeks of confinement in this city of four million inhabitants.

The city of Beijing has banned "the practice of blocking the doors of buildings in closed residential complexes", according to the New China agency, a process that has fueled popular anger.

With AFP

The summary of the

France 24 week invites you to come back to the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news everywhere with you!

Download the France 24 app