Indiscriminate Attacks in China: Information Control Will Only Amplify Anxiety

Editorial

14:59 JST, November 27, 2024

There has been a spate of killings and attacks resulting in injuries that have targeted children and pedestrians in various parts of China. What exactly is happening in Chinese society?

In November alone, there have been three known cases of indiscriminate attacks.

In Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, a man rammed a car into a crowd on Nov. 11, killing 35 people. On Nov. 16, a former student wielded a knife at a vocational school in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, and eight people died. In Changde, Hunan Province, on Nov. 19, a car hit and injured children and others in front of an elementary school.

In June, a Japanese mother and her child were stabbed with a knife and injured in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province. In September, a Japanese boy was stabbed to death in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. The specific motives for the attacks, including whether Japanese people were deliberately targeted, have yet to be disclosed.

In all of these cases, children and other vulnerable or unprotected members of the crowd were attacked indiscriminately. It is not normal for such heinous crimes to occur so frequently.

On Chinese social media, some people have argued that the spate of crimes is “revenge against society.” These attacks are happening against the backdrop of an economic slump. One speculation is that there are an increasing number of people who are unemployed, having difficulty finding jobs or facing other kinds of challenges, and some of them have become desperate and resorted to crime.

Meanwhile, the Chinese government has not indicated the motives in many cases, and the Chinese media, which is under the control of the authorities, has not reported the details of the incidents. Also, videos posted on social media by members of the public have been deleted.

The Chinese government likely fears that trust in the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party will be shaken as the belief spreads that the root of the crimes is dissatisfaction with current Chinese society.

There is no doubt that the administration of Chinese President Xi Jinping is heightening a sense of crisis. Immediately after the incident in Zhuhai, Xi issued an unusually important instruction, saying measures should be imposed to control risk to prevent “the occurrence of extreme cases.”

In response to this, work is said to have begun in some areas to identify some groups of people — such as those who have failed investments, unemployed people and those who have lost hope in life. It is thought that they will be monitored as potential criminals.

However, even if the authorities strengthen surveillance and information control by making full use of digital technology as they have done up until now, that will only spread a sense of being trapped in society and will not lead to a fundamental solution.

In order to prevent a recurrence of similar cases and restore public order, it is essential to put in place support measures for people with problems and who are dissatisfied. It is also important to improve the social safety net by strengthening, for example, medical and pension programs.

Concerns are growing among foreigners, including Japanese, that they can no longer travel to China with peace of mind. It could have a negative impact on business and personal exchanges with China. The resumption of the visa-free program for Japanese people for short-term stays in China that has been decided recently should not go to waste.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Nov. 27, 2024)