Macau is closing its casinos, Hong Kong is closing its borders, and mainlanders are calling upon their compatriots to report “enemies” of the communist “class struggle.”
“People with fever who do not confess are enemies of the class struggle lurking among the people,” reads a slogan which has been printed on banners and spread all over mainland China.
The 2019-nCoV epidemic has led many mainland Chinese nationals to live in fear and with constant vigilance, worried that any one of them may be infected with the virus.
For the first time in over a decade, the mainland Chinese government has shut down the public transportation network of an entire province, central China’s Hubei. All other provinces are beginning to implement similar measures.
The mainland’s government authorities have postponed the re-opening of schools and return to work after the 2020 Lunar New Year holiday. Businesses are closing earlier in almost every mainland city due to fears of the virus. Public transportation is either shut down or partially suspended. Residents can only board public transportation if they are wearing a mask.
Since all media channels in mainland China, including social networks, are part of the Chinese communist government’s propaganda machine, as of today, these channels are reminding Chinese citizens to stay at home and protect themselves, and to not travel, gather, throw parties or play mahjong.
Driven by this singular public voice, mainland Chinese citizens have also begun their longstanding historical tradition of displaying red banners with slogans urging the people what to do. These slogans are not a beacon of morality; they serve only to remind people to care about their health and to not travel or gather in one place.
“Today you go outside, tomorrow pneumonia will visit you,” one slogan reads.
“To not throw a party is to think of future parties, to not visit family is to think of having families in the future,” reads another.
Slogans for masks are also common throughout China. “Mask or ventilator: choose one of them,” one slogan reads. “Wearing a mask is better than wearing a ventilator, laying at home is better than laying in the ICU,” another reads, referring to intensive care units at hospitals. A third mask-related slogan states, “Through saving some money by not wearing masks, you will spend lots of money laying on a bed and paying for doctors.”
Besides these slogans, which mostly concern the individuals themselves, there are also slogans instilling hatred and hostility towards others.
“Sons returning to their hometown with diseases are not filial, they don’t regret having infected their parents,” one slogan says.
“We’d prefer to be rotting at home rather than occupying a space in a hospital,” another village slogan urges. “Discover early, report early, prosecute early, control early,” reads a slogan issued by a village communist party calling on people to report others.
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