In mainland China, indiscriminate random acts of violence have been occurring frequently, causing heightened anxiety among the populace. The authorities’ tight control over information only adds to the fear, as people fear such senseless attacks could happen around them without warning.
The societal safety net facing resource constraints, high unemployment rates, and a struggling economy have led some individuals to express their dissatisfaction with the authorities through large-scale violent acts.
In terms of public opinion, the rare response from the top leader of the Chinese Communist Party to the recent car attack incident in Zhuhai called for authorities to “learn from the incident and strengthen prevention measures at the source of risks.” However, in action, the authorities swiftly suppressed any private discussions or public mourning related to the tragic event, with the police revealing minimal additional information beyond basic statements.
On November 11th, a 62-year-old man drove an SUV into the internal roads of the Zhuhai Sports Center, running over citizens exercising, resulting in 35 deaths and 43 injuries.
In the days following the incident, official Chinese state media like the People’s Daily published multiple articles about the Zhuhai Air Show, completely omitting mention of this serious large-scale violent event.
Subsequently, on the 19th, an incident where individuals were struck in front of the Yong’an Elementary School in Changde, Hunan Province occurred, with related information being censored and scrutinized by the authorities. Some netizens commented that Chinese society is like a pressure cooker ready to explode at any moment.
Qin Xiaojie, founder of CandleX, a Beijing-based mental health support organization, mentioned that recent attacks reflect “a very strong emotion, that being the unfairness in society.”
He stated that high unemployment rates, uneven public services, especially in addressing mental health issues, make people feel extremely hopeless, as if they cannot go on living.
This phenomenon has given rise to an internet meme called “Xianzhongdu,” or “Zhang Xianzhong,” referring to the Ming Dynasty peasant Zhang Xianzhong who killed many innocent people during a rebellion, drawing parallels to present-day events.
An image circulating in the Chinese digital sphere encapsulated concepts like “involution studies” along with other contemporary Chinese phenomena (including “lying flat” and “moistening studies”). This image suggests that for some individuals, the only way to escape modern societal pressures is by resorting to extreme measures.
Renowned educator Yu Minhong, founder of New Oriental Education & Technology Group, previously indicated that China’s society is filled with violence. He highlighted the repercussions of a lack of fairness and justice, where problem resolution becomes unattainable through proper channels, resulting in the degradation of human dignity and the transformation of good people into bad in such a society.
Netizens have recently brought up Yu Minhong’s posts from years ago, indicating that his words from 11 years prior remain relevant today, but expressing concerns that even he now refrains from speaking out, as speaking similarly against current issues would likely result in immediate censorship by the authorities.
Kevin Slaten, the head of the human rights organization China Dissident Monitor, noted in an interview with Voice of America that violent attacks in China are occurring at an alarming frequency. One of the reasons attributed to this trend is the economic downturn in China, along with the direct discontent from various industries and social strata caused by economic hardships.
Slaten mentioned that while mechanisms exist in China to address issues of discontent concerning wages and other grievances, these channels do not grant people the opportunity to resolve problems through these means, potentially leading to anger and despair escalating into large-scale violence.
Submitting collective cases to the Chinese (Communist) court system is challenging, as court proceedings often take extended periods, making it difficult for marginalized groups lacking time or resources to engage with the legal system, and hence, they are unable to rely on the judicial system for resolution.
Voice of America conducted an analysis on online reports of violent attacks in China from February to November of this year, revealing that these attacks collectively caused approximately 120 fatalities and over 213 injuries.
November stood out as the month with the highest death toll from malicious incidents in China. In most of these attacks, the suspects utilized knives and vehicles.
Due to the immediate removal of attack-related information from social media platforms by the Chinese authorities, it becomes challenging for outsiders to comprehend the motives of the assailants or understand the scale and frequency of these incidents.
Dali Yang, a China politics expert from the University of Chicago, mentioned to Voice of America that the Chinese government does not want others to view retaliating against society as a means to express discontent when legitimate avenues fail. However, the act of suppressing public discussions makes it difficult for the authorities to understand the root causes behind such incidents or effectively address these issues.
Yang stated that with the Chinese authorities restricting the dissemination of information regarding these attacks, the Chinese population is increasingly alarmed by the surge in random acts of violence.
“Even without much information, I genuinely feel anxiety from people in the (social media) chats about these attacks in China. Part of the reason is that these attacks are indiscriminate and happen in crowded places,” he noted.
Zeng Ruisheng, director of the Asian Studies Institute at Asia University, informed The Guardian that these attacks also reflect the “failure of the social contract between the Chinese people and the Communist Party.”
“Those desperate individuals cannot envision a better tomorrow for themselves, or else they would not behave in such a desperate manner,” he emphasized.