Beijing: China’s ruling party on Tuesday said it will “resolutely crackdown” on “hostile” forces, days after large-scale street agitations were held by citizens in several cities against strict Covid-19 curbs.
The Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission (CPLAC), the top law enforcement body of the Communist Party of China (CPC), issued a statement late on Tuesday night, saying said the government should “resolutely crack down on infiltration and sabotage activities by hostile forces and illegal and criminal acts that disrupt social order”.
The statement, issued at a meeting led by security czar Chen Wenqing, did not make any reference to the protests.
“Illegal and criminal acts won’t be tolerated,” it added.
“It also asked the political and legal organs to be clear about potential dangers and strengthen fighting spirit, speed up the building of a safer China and a China under the rule of law at a higher level,” a Global Times report said.
The commission’s statement, issued after an expanded session on Monday, presided over by Chen, a member of the party’s 24-member Politburo, said the meeting aimed to review the outcomes of October’s 20th party congress.
The crackdown was announced even as the government relaxed some virus-control rules amid reports of fresh clashes between protesters and security personnel in the southern city of Guangzhou.
A Reuters report said that people in the southern manufacturing hub of Guangzhou clashed with white hazmat-suited riot police on Tuesday night, the latest in a string of protests that escalated over the weekend over stringent Covid-19 curbs.
“In one video posted on Twitter, dozens of riot police in all-white pandemic gear, holding shields over their heads, advanced in formation over what appeared to be torn down lockdown barriers as objects fly at them. Police were later seen escorting a row of people in handcuffs to an unknown location,” the Reuters report said.
The clashes took place even as local authorities in Guangzhou announced that some Covid-control rules in Guangzhou, which is the worst hit in the ongoing outbreak, will be eased including resumption of in-person classes in schools and in-dining at restaurants.
Overall, China logged 37,828 new infections reported on Wednesday for Tuesday, of which 4,288 were symptomatic and 33,540 were asymptomatic, the national health commission (NHC) said on Wednesday.
That is compared with 38,645 new cases a day earlier – 3,624 symptomatic and 35,021 asymptomatic infections.
New cases in Beijing rose, with the city logging 4,522 infections including 1,282 symptomatic ones for Tuesday.
