1 00:00:02,920 --> 00:00:05,200 Speaker 1: My name is Lily Maddon and I'm a proud Arunda 2 00:00:05,440 --> 00:00:10,240 Speaker 1: Bunjelung Kalkotin woman from Gadighl Country. The Daily oz acknowledges 3 00:00:10,320 --> 00:00:12,479 Speaker 1: that this podcast is recorded on the lands of the 4 00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:16,040 Speaker 1: Gadighl people and pays respect to all Aboriginal and Torres 5 00:00:16,079 --> 00:00:19,000 Speaker 1: Straight Island and nations. We pay our respects to the 6 00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:21,799 Speaker 1: first peoples of these countries, both past and present. 7 00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:29,760 Speaker 2: Good morning, and welcome to the Daily os. It's Tuesday, 8 00:00:29,800 --> 00:00:33,160 Speaker 2: the twenty ninth of November. I'm Sam, I'm Billy. Snap 9 00:00:33,200 --> 00:00:37,080 Speaker 2: lockdowns and a deadly fire have sparked outrage across China. 10 00:00:37,240 --> 00:00:40,760 Speaker 3: Thousands of protesters took to the city's streets, an extremely 11 00:00:40,880 --> 00:00:44,880 Speaker 3: rare sight in a country whose government hardly ever tolerates criticism. 12 00:00:45,080 --> 00:00:49,559 Speaker 3: One hundreds shouted President Jijinping step down day be. 13 00:00:52,200 --> 00:00:53,960 Speaker 2: We're going to look at what's happening and what it 14 00:00:54,000 --> 00:00:56,400 Speaker 2: all means in the deep diet. But first, Billy, what's 15 00:00:56,440 --> 00:00:57,560 Speaker 2: making headlines this morning. 16 00:01:02,480 --> 00:01:05,600 Speaker 4: Scott Morrison will be censured in Parliament this week over 17 00:01:05,640 --> 00:01:09,119 Speaker 4: his move to secretly swear himself into multiple ministries while 18 00:01:09,200 --> 00:01:13,000 Speaker 4: Prime Minister. It comes after a report into Morrison's actions 19 00:01:13,120 --> 00:01:15,960 Speaker 4: was handed down last week and found the move undermined 20 00:01:16,080 --> 00:01:20,759 Speaker 4: the principles of responsible government. Prime Minister Anthony Albanesi said 21 00:01:20,760 --> 00:01:23,680 Speaker 4: that the government would be introducing new legislation that would 22 00:01:23,760 --> 00:01:26,959 Speaker 4: quote make sure this can never ever happen again. 23 00:01:29,560 --> 00:01:31,959 Speaker 2: The National Party have said they will oppose a First 24 00:01:32,040 --> 00:01:35,240 Speaker 2: Nation's voice to Parliament, with leader David Little Proud saying 25 00:01:35,280 --> 00:01:37,880 Speaker 2: they don't believe the voice would genuinely close the gap 26 00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:41,280 Speaker 2: of disadvantage for First Nations people. The federal government has 27 00:01:41,280 --> 00:01:43,440 Speaker 2: promised a referendum on a voice to Parliament in this 28 00:01:43,560 --> 00:01:45,880 Speaker 2: term of government, which would only be passed if it's 29 00:01:45,880 --> 00:01:48,600 Speaker 2: approved by a majority of voters in a majority of states. 30 00:01:51,240 --> 00:01:55,360 Speaker 4: Australia's terrorism threat level has been lowered from probable to possible, 31 00:01:55,640 --> 00:01:58,160 Speaker 4: which is the first change to the threat level in 32 00:01:58,280 --> 00:02:03,480 Speaker 4: eight yearsnouncement was made by Mike Burgess, the leader of AZIO, 33 00:02:03,720 --> 00:02:06,520 Speaker 4: who said there were fewer extremists with the intention to 34 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:10,520 Speaker 4: conduct an attack on shore than there were in twenty fourteen. 35 00:02:12,560 --> 00:02:16,240 Speaker 2: And today's good news, Mars, Snickers and Milky Way chocolate 36 00:02:16,280 --> 00:02:19,480 Speaker 2: bars will all move through recyclable packaging in effort to 37 00:02:19,480 --> 00:02:23,160 Speaker 2: be more sustainable. The manufacturer of the chocolate bars Mars Wrigley. 38 00:02:23,240 --> 00:02:25,600 Speaker 2: Australia says it hopes to cut over three hundred and 39 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:29,040 Speaker 2: sixty tons of plastic once it moves to paper based packaging. 40 00:02:29,080 --> 00:02:34,200 Speaker 2: In April, snap lockdowns and a deadly fire have triggered 41 00:02:34,200 --> 00:02:41,760 Speaker 2: a wave of protests in China. This is a rare 42 00:02:41,800 --> 00:02:46,280 Speaker 2: showing of civil disobedience against the government and its leader, Jijimping, 43 00:02:46,720 --> 00:02:49,680 Speaker 2: and we're hearing calls not just for the end of lockdowns, 44 00:02:49,760 --> 00:02:52,800 Speaker 2: but for the removal of the Chinese Communist Party altogether. 45 00:02:53,320 --> 00:02:56,240 Speaker 4: This is really big news. It was leading news bulletins 46 00:02:56,280 --> 00:02:59,000 Speaker 4: all around the world yesterday. But Sam, I want to 47 00:02:59,040 --> 00:03:03,280 Speaker 4: start with the COVID situation. Where are numbers at and 48 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:06,040 Speaker 4: how is the Chinese government responding? Well? 49 00:03:06,080 --> 00:03:08,360 Speaker 2: The COVID numbers in China are now close to forty 50 00:03:08,400 --> 00:03:12,000 Speaker 2: thousand a day Billy, which is breaking previous records that 51 00:03:12,040 --> 00:03:14,720 Speaker 2: were only set last week. And that number does seem 52 00:03:14,760 --> 00:03:18,080 Speaker 2: to be growing. Despite a needse of restrictions here in 53 00:03:18,080 --> 00:03:20,960 Speaker 2: Australia and in the rest of the world, China continues 54 00:03:21,000 --> 00:03:24,840 Speaker 2: to pursue a policy they call dynamic zero COVID and 55 00:03:24,960 --> 00:03:28,360 Speaker 2: President she recommitted to his hardline stance earlier this month. 56 00:03:28,800 --> 00:03:32,840 Speaker 2: Now this policy includes swift and targeted responses to identify 57 00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:36,680 Speaker 2: areas and communities with infections and lock them down. We 58 00:03:36,720 --> 00:03:39,520 Speaker 2: actually did a story last month Billy around the urgent 59 00:03:39,560 --> 00:03:43,200 Speaker 2: lockdown of Disneyland in Shanghai after a handful of cases 60 00:03:43,200 --> 00:03:46,440 Speaker 2: were identified and people were locked inside the facility. And 61 00:03:46,520 --> 00:03:49,960 Speaker 2: last week new restrictions were introduced in multiple cities, including 62 00:03:50,000 --> 00:03:54,040 Speaker 2: Beijing and Shanghai, putting millions of people back into lockdown. 63 00:03:54,320 --> 00:03:57,600 Speaker 4: So lockdowns have been the status quo in China since 64 00:03:57,680 --> 00:04:01,320 Speaker 4: COVID began in early twenty twenty. So why are people 65 00:04:01,360 --> 00:04:03,840 Speaker 4: taking to the streets now? What has triggered this? 66 00:04:04,320 --> 00:04:07,040 Speaker 2: These protests broke out in response to a fire that 67 00:04:07,160 --> 00:04:09,800 Speaker 2: killed at least ten people last Thursday in a town 68 00:04:09,880 --> 00:04:13,240 Speaker 2: called Urumchi. Now. Urumchi is the regional capital of the 69 00:04:13,240 --> 00:04:16,799 Speaker 2: northwest Xinxiang region, which is also where the Chinese government 70 00:04:16,880 --> 00:04:20,560 Speaker 2: has been accused of human rights violations against the Uga people. 71 00:04:21,120 --> 00:04:23,080 Speaker 2: And while we're just on that, we did use to 72 00:04:23,080 --> 00:04:26,960 Speaker 2: say Wiga, but based on the preference of the communities themselves, 73 00:04:27,080 --> 00:04:30,520 Speaker 2: have changed our pronunciation to Uga. Now, these COVID restrictions 74 00:04:30,600 --> 00:04:34,080 Speaker 2: have actually been in place in Urumchi since early August, 75 00:04:34,440 --> 00:04:36,839 Speaker 2: the BBC has been reporting that people living in the 76 00:04:36,880 --> 00:04:41,840 Speaker 2: building had been largely prevented from leaving their homes without permission. Now. 77 00:04:41,880 --> 00:04:44,920 Speaker 2: A resident of Urumchi who lived near the fire told 78 00:04:44,920 --> 00:04:47,960 Speaker 2: the BBC that people who live in apartment blocks quote 79 00:04:48,000 --> 00:04:51,520 Speaker 2: don't dare go downstairs without permits, and this raised some 80 00:04:51,600 --> 00:04:55,240 Speaker 2: questions about how quickly the residents evacuated the burning building 81 00:04:55,279 --> 00:04:58,120 Speaker 2: and whether they felt able to do so. When word 82 00:04:58,160 --> 00:05:00,960 Speaker 2: about the fire got out, some video started to circulate 83 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:05,480 Speaker 2: online which suggested that lockdown measures delayed firefighters from accessing 84 00:05:05,480 --> 00:05:10,120 Speaker 2: the building. Now Unsurprisingly, local authorities have denied that lockdowns 85 00:05:10,160 --> 00:05:12,880 Speaker 2: played a role, saying the deaths were because some residents 86 00:05:12,880 --> 00:05:14,880 Speaker 2: were too weak and they failed to escape. 87 00:05:15,000 --> 00:05:17,920 Speaker 4: So this fire happened, when did the actual protest? 88 00:05:18,160 --> 00:05:20,919 Speaker 2: Kickoff was pretty short Between the actual fire and the 89 00:05:20,960 --> 00:05:24,520 Speaker 2: beginning of the protests. On Friday night, footage emerged showing 90 00:05:24,640 --> 00:05:27,640 Speaker 2: residents of Urumchi gathering on the streets. They were chanting 91 00:05:27,720 --> 00:05:32,080 Speaker 2: and arguing with officials, and authorities issued an unusual apology 92 00:05:32,160 --> 00:05:35,400 Speaker 2: later on Friday night, and on Saturday morning, they announced 93 00:05:35,400 --> 00:05:38,480 Speaker 2: a phased easing of lockdown restrictions in the area. So 94 00:05:38,520 --> 00:05:42,320 Speaker 2: clearly the protests calls were being hurt, but it wasn't 95 00:05:42,400 --> 00:05:46,240 Speaker 2: quite enough to quell outrage spreading through China over the weekend, 96 00:05:46,839 --> 00:05:50,480 Speaker 2: protests spreads into the cities of Wuhan and Chengdu, as 97 00:05:50,520 --> 00:05:54,160 Speaker 2: well as numerous university campuses around China, and in the 98 00:05:54,200 --> 00:05:56,480 Speaker 2: early hours of Monday morning, only a couple of days 99 00:05:56,600 --> 00:06:00,279 Speaker 2: after the fire in Beijing, around one thousand peace people 100 00:06:00,279 --> 00:06:03,440 Speaker 2: gathered at the Third Ring Road, which encircles the city center. 101 00:06:04,240 --> 00:06:06,960 Speaker 2: We've seen a little bit of these protests around the 102 00:06:06,960 --> 00:06:11,080 Speaker 2: country in some footage online protesters smashing through metal barricades 103 00:06:11,160 --> 00:06:14,520 Speaker 2: and overturning COVID testing facilities. I did just want to 104 00:06:14,560 --> 00:06:17,560 Speaker 2: mention though, that because of censorship, we aren't seeing as 105 00:06:17,640 --> 00:06:20,359 Speaker 2: much on social media as we might from other parts 106 00:06:20,360 --> 00:06:23,719 Speaker 2: of the world. Some protesters have been managing to post 107 00:06:23,800 --> 00:06:27,240 Speaker 2: videos and images holding up blank pieces of paper. Now 108 00:06:27,440 --> 00:06:29,600 Speaker 2: this is a symbol of defiance and a way of 109 00:06:29,600 --> 00:06:33,360 Speaker 2: getting around the censorship, but even that is facing crackdowns, 110 00:06:33,400 --> 00:06:37,200 Speaker 2: and the hashtag white paper exercise has eventually been blocked 111 00:06:37,240 --> 00:06:39,440 Speaker 2: on the Chinese social media platform Waibo. 112 00:06:39,760 --> 00:06:42,279 Speaker 4: So you've kind of inferred that these protesters are against 113 00:06:42,279 --> 00:06:45,080 Speaker 4: the extreme COVID restrictions, But is there anything that they're 114 00:06:45,120 --> 00:06:47,159 Speaker 4: calling for specifically, what are they saying. 115 00:06:47,680 --> 00:06:50,880 Speaker 2: They're basically calling for the end of lockdown in the country, 116 00:06:51,040 --> 00:06:53,320 Speaker 2: and it's worth noting, and I really want to stick 117 00:06:53,360 --> 00:06:56,039 Speaker 2: on this point that lockdown in China is very different 118 00:06:56,080 --> 00:06:59,680 Speaker 2: to the lockdowns that we experienced here in Australia. Especially, 119 00:06:59,800 --> 00:07:03,640 Speaker 2: they have been a lot stricter. At different points, residents 120 00:07:03,680 --> 00:07:06,120 Speaker 2: haven't been able to leave their houses to buy groceries 121 00:07:06,160 --> 00:07:08,240 Speaker 2: and because of this, there's been accounts that people have 122 00:07:08,320 --> 00:07:12,040 Speaker 2: been unable to access essential items like food and medical supplies. 123 00:07:12,520 --> 00:07:16,800 Speaker 2: Authorities have been repeatedly carrying out mandatory mass testing and 124 00:07:16,880 --> 00:07:20,640 Speaker 2: people who test positive are sometimes sent to quarantine facilities. 125 00:07:21,240 --> 00:07:23,600 Speaker 2: I guess to try and encapsulate how some of these 126 00:07:23,640 --> 00:07:27,880 Speaker 2: restrictions work. In the Guajo province, in September, a bus 127 00:07:27,920 --> 00:07:30,600 Speaker 2: that was taking people to one of these facilities crashed 128 00:07:30,600 --> 00:07:33,880 Speaker 2: and killed twenty seven people, and this has been criticized 129 00:07:33,920 --> 00:07:37,400 Speaker 2: as a result of the extreme COVID measures. Now these 130 00:07:37,520 --> 00:07:41,320 Speaker 2: last protests also come after another protest last week at 131 00:07:41,320 --> 00:07:45,040 Speaker 2: an iPhone assembly factory where workers were protesting harsh COVID 132 00:07:45,080 --> 00:07:48,280 Speaker 2: restrictions there. Now, workers had to contend with the fact 133 00:07:48,320 --> 00:07:50,800 Speaker 2: that they were forced to live in shared dormitories on 134 00:07:50,960 --> 00:07:54,400 Speaker 2: work premises to avoid the risk of exposure in their hometowns. 135 00:07:55,360 --> 00:07:58,120 Speaker 2: But I think what's really significant here is that these 136 00:07:58,160 --> 00:08:01,520 Speaker 2: protests are more than just a call to end COVID restrictions. 137 00:08:01,960 --> 00:08:05,440 Speaker 2: In Shanghai on Saturday night, protesters were heard shouting slogans 138 00:08:05,560 --> 00:08:09,600 Speaker 2: like xijimping, stepped down and down with the Communist Party. 139 00:08:10,080 --> 00:08:13,400 Speaker 2: This is a big deal in China, where publicly criticizing 140 00:08:13,400 --> 00:08:15,240 Speaker 2: the government can land you in prison. 141 00:08:15,760 --> 00:08:18,120 Speaker 4: When I think of protests in China, I think of 142 00:08:18,400 --> 00:08:23,760 Speaker 4: extreme crackdowns on the protesters and extreme police reactions. Has 143 00:08:23,800 --> 00:08:24,800 Speaker 4: that been true this time? 144 00:08:25,120 --> 00:08:29,360 Speaker 2: Definitely. There's been accounts of police brutality and arrests. Reutter's 145 00:08:29,480 --> 00:08:33,080 Speaker 2: reported a twenty six year old protester in Shanghai as saying, quote, 146 00:08:33,200 --> 00:08:35,800 Speaker 2: the people here aren't violent, but the police are arresting 147 00:08:35,840 --> 00:08:39,199 Speaker 2: them for no reason. The BBC has also put out 148 00:08:39,200 --> 00:08:41,959 Speaker 2: a statement saying that they're very concerned about the treatment 149 00:08:41,960 --> 00:08:44,800 Speaker 2: of one of their journalists, Ed Lawrence, who was arrested 150 00:08:44,840 --> 00:08:48,000 Speaker 2: and handcuffed while covering the protests in Shanghai, and they 151 00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:50,560 Speaker 2: say he was beaten and kicked by police during his arrest, 152 00:08:50,679 --> 00:08:54,000 Speaker 2: and that they haven't received an explanation from Chinese authorities 153 00:08:54,200 --> 00:08:56,440 Speaker 2: except a claim by officials that he was arrested for 154 00:08:56,480 --> 00:08:59,439 Speaker 2: his own good in case he caught COVID from the crowd. 155 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:02,959 Speaker 4: Will be right back, but first a message from our sponsors. 156 00:09:06,080 --> 00:09:09,040 Speaker 4: You guys have spoken a lot about President G over 157 00:09:09,120 --> 00:09:11,679 Speaker 4: the last six months on the podcast, so I want 158 00:09:11,679 --> 00:09:14,960 Speaker 4: to talk about the political implications here for President G. 159 00:09:16,080 --> 00:09:19,000 Speaker 2: Well, I think the real significance here is that these 160 00:09:19,040 --> 00:09:21,840 Speaker 2: protests are happening at all, full stop. This is a 161 00:09:21,880 --> 00:09:25,520 Speaker 2: state normally under such type political control, and to kind 162 00:09:25,520 --> 00:09:28,440 Speaker 2: of put that into perspective. According to the ABC, the 163 00:09:28,520 --> 00:09:31,200 Speaker 2: last time China saw this kind of rallying in multiple 164 00:09:31,240 --> 00:09:34,440 Speaker 2: cities against the government was the Tianaman Square protests in 165 00:09:34,520 --> 00:09:38,480 Speaker 2: nineteen eighty nine. Now, for President G, the hardline stance 166 00:09:38,480 --> 00:09:41,320 Speaker 2: against COVID has been one of the defining policies of 167 00:09:41,360 --> 00:09:43,959 Speaker 2: his rule, and some are saying his stance has been 168 00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:46,599 Speaker 2: so strong on this that abandoning the policy would be 169 00:09:46,679 --> 00:09:49,800 Speaker 2: perceived as admitting failure and that would have a huge 170 00:09:49,840 --> 00:09:53,040 Speaker 2: impact on his reputation in China. And G is a 171 00:09:53,120 --> 00:09:56,480 Speaker 2: leader who deeply cares about his perception within the country 172 00:09:56,520 --> 00:10:00,000 Speaker 2: and his legacy. Now, how that materializes when he's present 173 00:10:00,120 --> 00:10:03,400 Speaker 2: entered with opposition movements like these protests is normally by 174 00:10:03,480 --> 00:10:06,920 Speaker 2: using force, which is something we could see player if 175 00:10:06,960 --> 00:10:08,320 Speaker 2: these protests continue. 176 00:10:08,600 --> 00:10:10,679 Speaker 4: It is one of the biggest stories in the world 177 00:10:10,720 --> 00:10:12,960 Speaker 4: right now and as always, one that we will be 178 00:10:13,040 --> 00:10:17,600 Speaker 4: keeping our eye on. Thank you so much for joining 179 00:10:17,679 --> 00:10:19,839 Speaker 4: us on the Daily OS. If you've learnt something from 180 00:10:19,920 --> 00:10:22,760 Speaker 4: today's episode, don't forget to hit subscribe so there's a 181 00:10:22,800 --> 00:10:26,560 Speaker 4: TDA episode waiting for you every weekday morning. We'll be 182 00:10:26,600 --> 00:10:34,839 Speaker 4: back again tomorrow, but until then, have a great day.