After the conclusion of the Fourth Plenum, the Chinese Communist Party has designated monitoring online public opinion as a top priority in maintaining stability. Authorities have instructed local law enforcement to closely monitor anti-government rhetoric and actions with slogans. Grassroots street offices are required to promptly report any abnormal situations, while civilian protests are shifting from online to offline channels.
Following the Fourth Plenum, instances of anti-communist and anti-Xi slogans have continued to spread in many parts of China. In response to these circumstances, sources familiar with the matter revealed that the central authorities of the CCP have explicitly instructed localities to prioritize “monitoring public opinion as a key aspect of stability control” and urged local public security to vigilantly guard against “reactionary slogans and inappropriate speech”. They mentioned that the emergence of anti-Xi slogans in recent times reflects long-standing public grievances, as “the number of dissenters is increasing, actions may escalate, and these slogans indicate dissatisfaction with the government”.
Interviewees from Henan, Chongqing, and other places have told reporters that there has been a noticeable increase in anti-government slogans recently. They mentioned, “If they can’t speak online, they place slogans and graffiti in offline locations, some expressing opposition to dictatorship, others directly targeting leaders to vent their frustrations. In fact, this is another way to express dissatisfaction, with offline expressions having a greater impact.”
A street office worker from Chaoyang District in Beijing confirmed during an interview that they had indeed received a directive from higher authorities post the Fourth Plenum, emphasizing the need to “strengthen public opinion observation” and particularly highlighting the requirement to “immediately report any reactionary slogans”. He stated, “This task has been included as an essential part of daily inspections in the streets, with police stations and community workers reporting any abnormal signs in their WeChat groups daily. The primary focus is on identifying reactionary slogans, some of which are placed on mailbox units, while others are put up in stairwells.”
Since last year, in Beijing, Zhengzhou, Chengdu, and other places, several photos circulating on social media have shown walls filled with small slogan papers. Most are brief in content, carrying political slogans or appeals. Some images have been deleted shortly after posting but continue to be reposted by overseas users. While these slogan activities are sporadic, the frequency indicates that “the resistance sentiment is not subsiding”.
A resident in Shenyang, Ms. Tian, mentioned that there has been a noticeable increase in street wanderers and homeless individuals, stating, “There are too many unemployed people, some households face electricity cut-offs, leaving them homeless, only able to sleep near parks or garbage bins. These people also put up slogans to express their anger.”
She said that posting slogans in the physical environment has become a form of “silent protest”, as “if one can’t speak online, they speak offline”.
Recently, protesters in Suiping County, Zhoukou City, Henan Province, were reported to have pasted slogans on a signboard outside the Linyang Police Station, reading “Eliminate the Communist Party” to convey their anger.
A netizen in Anyang, Henan, expressed that there are increasingly more people discussing their difficulties in life around them. “If they can’t say it online, they do it offline, some shout slogans, others put up slogans.” Online censorship has deprived ordinary people of their means of expression, while pasting slogans makes it difficult for the authorities to monitor and has a more direct impact.
Reporters interviewed several individuals in Beijing, who disclosed that most slogan posters are unemployed workers, individuals facing mortgage defaults, and veterans. Economic hardship, delayed wages, and a sluggish real estate market have led many to extreme emotional states.
According to statistics from the China Media Project affiliated with the Freedom House, in the third quarter of this year, China witnessed 1392 protest events, a 45% increase compared to the same period last year, marking the sixth consecutive quarter of growth. A significant portion of these incidents fall under the category of “individualized political expression”, including the posting of slogans, hanging banners, and graffiti.
In the first half of this year, events involving slogans or big-character posters occurred in Jinan, Shandong, and Foshan, Guangdong. A netizen from Guangdong stated, “I won’t mention the content of the slogans, but you know. Some photos show they were placed at police stations, bus stops, or the back of restroom doors, mostly written by people when using the restroom.”
Regarding the aforementioned phenomena, a scholar in Beijing, Mr. Liu, analyzed that the authorities’ intensified monitoring of public opinion and the phenomenon of civilian slogan-posting are “mirror images” of each other. He mentioned, “Economic pressure, mortgage issues, and waves of unemployment have eroded people’s trust in official propaganda, and the more surveillance tightens, the more resistance grows”.
Mr. Liu believes that the CCP’s current stability maintenance model mainly relies on technological monitoring and administrative pressure, ignoring the root causes of economic and social contradictions.
Another interviewed university lecturer, Mr. Cheng, pointed out that the visible resistance slogans are just the tip of the iceberg, as “many grassroots people are unable to voice their opinions online, only able to express dissatisfaction in the simplest ways.” He believes that this behavior reflects the breakdown of political discourse.
Mr. Cheng stated that economic pressure is a significant factor triggering public dissatisfaction. Since 2025, youth unemployment rates in China have remained high, the real estate market continues to decline, and cases of mortgage defaults are on the rise. Declining property values and incomes have caused household financial crises, weakening people’s trust in the future. Some individuals have translated this imbalanced sentiment into symbolic actions, challenging symbols of power through slogan-posting.
A source familiar with the matter mentioned that within the CCP’s public security system, multiple “public opinion stability control meetings” have been held recently, urging grassroots levels to “detect early signs”. He revealed, “It’s no longer about preventing online rumors but about preventing street slogans. It has been explicitly stated that slogans are offline political risk signals”.
Currently, the CCP maintains its official narrative of “overall social stability” externally, but at the local level, there is a simultaneous increase in public opinion pressure and livelihood challenges. Unemployment, cut-offs, and poverty spreading lead to “anti-government speech” expanding from online platforms to real-life scenarios. This transition from virtual to physical spaces is becoming a new indicator to observe tensions in Chinese society.