China: Ex-General's daughter chides Xi Jinping administration over zero-COVID policy

Luo Diandian, daughter of former General of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and cabinet minister of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Luo Ruiquing, in the past week, slammed Chinese President Xi Jinping's controversial zero-COVID-19 policy that has pushed over millions of people in China under strict lockdown. The rare instance came to the forefront after a letter by Diandian to someone named Ma Xiaoli became viral overnight after it was leaked on non-mainstream Hong Kong media. The critical letter was widely shared by anti-CCP activist channels and pages on YouTube channels and Telegram groups.

According to local media reports, Diandian mentioned the zero-COVID policy, a public health measure that requires Chinese authorities to 'find, test, trace, and isolate' citizens infected with the virus, and outlined the negatives attributed to it. However, she avoided directly naming Xi Jinping in her commentative note.

"The dynamic clearing policy obviously violated basic practice of the 9th edition of the COVID diagnosis and treatment plans formulated by experts. It does not conform to the mutation characteristics of the novel coronavirus and it lacks basic scientific thinking," Diandian explained.

The daughter of the former influential CCP leader also went on to emphasise that the COVID measures undertaken by Jinping's administration "breaks the common sense that professional problems must be handled by experts." In her explanatory remarks, she added, "The direct use of the party system to implement executive orders to break the routine of the state's administrative operation of course has brought about a lack of separation of responsibilities, chaotic government orders, and out-of-control management." Noting the concerns of the experts, she argued, "This has not only undermined the enthusiasm of cadres at all levels who really want to do things well, leaving the loss as what to do."

Reliability, liability only criteria to head public office in Jinping's tenure

Jinping's tenure has remained largely controversial due to his stringent policies and an arbitrary crackdown on dissidents, leaving only unquestioned loyalty the criteria to be in his good books. Responding to the same, Diandian lambasted Jinping's policies saying, "These unreasonably centralised imposition of control over the mass, thus, disrupting the normal order of the whole society." Sweeping lockdown measures, followed by a targetted crackdown on capitalist organisations also took a massive toll on earning, living, education, employment, and even basic food security of the second-largest economy of the world. Diandian further shed light on the prevailing fear that clouded protestors in the wake of tight governing policies. "It makes me feel ashamed and humiliated to think that they, who still have some power in your hands, did not even organize a decent boycott; most people were treated unfairly."

For the unversed, Jinping's COVID-19 measures have left at least 31 cities under full or partial lockdown. The fresh outbreak of coronavirus in Shanghai and subsequent lockdowns have impacted nearly 214 million residents across the country, as reported by CNN.

In two years the world has mostly learned to live with the virus, taking minimal necessary measures to prevent further outbreaks. However, Xi Jinping has doubled down on his efforts to curb the community spread of the virus by imposing mass testing mandates and lockdowns. He ordered strict adherence to the controversial zero-COVID policy and said would "punish" anyone who opposes or questions it.

This has led to an unprecedented job crisis, with employment rates falling to a critical low in two years. Extended lockdowns in China's financial hub have brought the world's largest economy to what Societe Generele analysts have described as "near breaking point." From the manufacturing and service sector to small-scale businesses were all intensely affected by the COVID measures.

(Image: AP)