China COVID protest Highlights: Everyone has the right to protest peacefully, says US

Thank you for joining our coverage of the China COVID protest. We will now wrap the blog. Good night.

China's zero-COVID policy not going to work; everyone has right to protest peacefully: US

The White House on Monday said that China's zero-COVID policy is unlikely to work and reaffirmed that everyone around the world has the right to protest peacefully, amid unprecedented demonstrations in the Communist nation over its stringent policy. "We’ve said that zero-COVID is not a policy we are pursuing here in the United States. And as we’ve said, we think it’s going to be very difficult for the People’s Republic of China to be able to contain this virus through their zero-COVID strategy,” a spokesperson of the White House National Security Council told news agency PTI.

China vows more ''friendly consensus'' amid Vatican complaints

Beijing and the Vatican are once again tangling over the prickly issue of appointing Chinese bishops. After complaints from the Vatican that Beijing was violating a 2018 interim accord, China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian on Monday said the country is willing to expand the “friendly consensus” achieved with the Vatican over bishop nominations. The Vatican issued an unusually harsh statement on Saturday complaining that Beijing on November 24 had installed Bishop John Peng Weizhao as an auxiliary bishop in the province of Jiangxi, which the Vatican doesn't recognise as a diocese.

Protests in China may be due to people's distrust against Xi Jinping's regime: Ex-Australian PM

The unprecedented protests against the controversial zero-COVID policy being held in different cities in China may also be due to Chinese people's "distrust" of President Xi Jinping's regime, Australia's former prime minister Kevin Rudd said on Monday.

Protests in China may be due to people's distrust against Xi Jinping's regime: Ex-Australian PM

The unprecedented protests against the controversial zero-COVID policy being held in different cities in China may also be due to Chinese people's "distrust" of President Xi Jinping's regime, Australia's former prime minister Kevin Rudd said on Monday.

China defends zero-Covid policy in the face of massive protests; Reports nearly 40,000 fresh cases

China on Monday dismissed concerns over its controversial zero-COVID policy in the face of unprecedented demonstrations, which have spread to Beijing even as it reported close to 40,000 coronavirus cases and authorities scrambled to contain the fresh surge in infections and protests against the Xi Jinping regime. The protests, which comes nearly a month after President Xi was elected as the ruling party's top leader for a third consecutive term, have spread to Shanghai, Beijing and many parts of the country in the last few days against the stringent policy under which cities and localities are kept under prolonged lockdowns and isolations.

Shanghai reports 16 symptomatic, 128 asymptomatic COVID cases for Sunday

Shanghai reported 16 new domestically transmitted symptomatic coronavirus cases for Sunday, up from 11 a day earlier, while 128 local asymptomatic cases were reported, up from 119 the previous day, the city government said on Monday. Four cases were reported outside quarantined areas, compared with four the day before.

China tightens security after rare protests against COVID curbs

Police on Monday patrolled the scenes of weekend protests in Shanghai and Beijing after crowds there and in other cities across China demonstrated against stringent COVID-19 measures disrupting lives three years into the pandemic. There was no sign of new protests on Monday in Beijing or Shanghai, but dozens of police were in the areas where the weekend demonstrations took place.

UK government 'considerably concerned' over BBC journalist's arrest 

Grant Shapps, the UK Business Secretary, said the UK government had “considerable concern” regarding the arrest of BBC journalist who was covering a protest in Shanghai, and was arrested and detained by authorities in China. The BBC said the journalist was kicked and beaten by the police and that he was held for many hours before being released. 

READ: China COVID protests off state media headlines, authorities move to censorship

Graphics | China under watch: Estimated number of CCTV cameras in Chinese cities compared with other cities around the world

The ruling party newspaper People’s Daily called for China's anti-virus strategy to be carried out effectively, indicating Xi’s government has no plans to change course. “Facts have fully proved that each version of the prevention and control plan has withstood the test of practice,” a People’s Daily commentator wrote.

"We believe that... our fight against Covid-19 will be successful": China's foreign ministry

When asked at a press briefing about the protests, foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said the question did not match the "facts".
"We believe that... our fight against Covid-19 will be successful".

How Chinese are protesting zero-COVID

Holding up blank pieces of paper, co-opting the national anthem, complicated wordplays: protesters in China are devising a myriad of creative ways to voice dissent against the government and its zero-Covid policy, AFP reported.

China affirms zero-COVID stance, eases restrictions after massive protests

Authorities eased anti-virus rules in scattered areas but affirmed China’s severe “zero- COVID” strategy Monday. The city government of Beijing announced it would no longer set up gates to block access to apartment compounds where infections are found.