Covid or not, the Chinese people continue to support their government

There is currently a massive Covid wave in China and the CCP government’s shameful response should indicate to us that this confidence is misplaced.

First, in authoritarian systems, capability does not translate into efficient governance. Regimes more concerned with their own survival are rarely able to sustainably invest in, produce, or administer public goods that benefit their citizens. Instead of focusing on the basic task of adequately vaccinating its citizens, the CCP has taken measures to control and regulate its citizens and test its coercive abilities through the mandatory use of tracking apps and regular testing and quarantine measures liked to do The fact that vaccination rates among older citizens have been so low is likely a result of poor communication from the government and a lack of confidence in the safety of vaccines.

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Second, totalitarian systems are usually winging it. China’s zero-Covid policy was sold as essential, as its government calculated at one point the country could face “1.55 million COVID-19 deaths”. The death toll may now well reach or even exceed that figure. The CCP’s abrupt end to its zero-COVID policy — practically overnight and in response to brief but unprecedented protests across the country, as well as the economic consequences in the longer term — shows that one of the world’s most powerful authoritarian regimes The U.S. ultimately had little understanding of the scientific and practical realities it could neither anticipate nor plan for contingencies, despite having three years to do so. If domestic policy, where the CCP is most powerful, turns out to be such a mess, questions will inevitably arise about foreign policy, which involves a disproportionate number of uncontrollable variables.

Third, hiding information or falsifying data is an essential feature of totalitarian regimes. It is ironic that such systems seek to maintain or regain the trust of their citizens. Since the current Covid wave broke out, China has so far only reported double-digit deaths in an effort to provide a positive glow towards the end of zero-Covid, even as open- Source data and satellite imagery show crematoriums are full. and is working round the clock. Earlier, Chinese diplomats also actively spread false news that COVID did not originate in China and then suggested that the US was the culprit. It was an attempt by the Chinese government to reclaim its image as an efficient economic and political system among its own population and the world’s smaller, weaker countries, who see Beijing as an alternative source of support and opportunity apart from the West. Huh.

Fourth, while authoritarian systems seek to cause harm externally, its effects will inevitably be felt by its own citizens. In January 2020, China allowed its citizens and foreigners living in the country to travel abroad even after officially sounding the alarm domestically about the new virus and so the virus could spread far and wide in a very short time. Spread. This was irresponsible behavior intended to create the impression that the Chinese government had the case in hand and/or to diffuse liability. The problem that was avoided by the zero-covid fiasco has finally hit home.

It’s not that the Chinese people don’t know how they are affected by their government’s actions, but history also shows that, despite terrible disasters like the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution, the CCP has internally worked hard for its rule. Haven’t seen any serious challenges. , Even the protests that erupted late last year quickly fizzled out. The lack of political choice and effective propaganda within China has led its population to believe that they have the best of all worlds and that future greatness is inevitable. The CCP has successfully taken Chinese citizens hostage. China’s Covid waves will soon be forgotten by its people when the CCP dramatizes the next foreign threat or promotes the next slogan of national greatness.

Disappointment with democratic methods, which can lead to inevitable delays, is often expressed in ill-informed discourse in India, and comparisons are drawn with authoritarian regimes that are mistakenly perceived as superior and result-oriented. Chinese citizens can forget their shoddy handling of the Covid crisis, but such superficial remarks deserve attention.

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