Many Chinese are unaware of the severity of the country’s poverty problem because of censorship and propaganda, according to The New York Times.
A retired woman recently made a video that went viral in which she demonstrated how many groceries she could purchase for 100 yuan, or USD 14.50, which is roughly the amount of her pension and only source of income. After that, Chinese authorities removed the video.
Young, educated Chinese people’s general discontent with their dismal financial situations and bleak employment possibilities, such as gig work, was expressed by a singer. He sings, “Every day I wash my face, but my pocket is cleaner than my face.” “I didn’t go to college to bring food, I went to college to help revitalise China.” The New York Times reports that his music was prohibited and his social media accounts were shut down.
After testing positive for COVID-19 and officials disclosed significant data of his movements, a migrant worker who was struggling to maintain his family last year attracted a lot of sympathy and attention. He earned the reputation of being China’s hardest worker. He was the subject of censorship, and local police were stationed outside his home to stop media from speaking to his wife.
China claims that it is a socialist nation with a goal of advancing prosperity for all. In 2021, its most senior leader, Xi Jinping, declared “a comprehensive victory in the battle against poverty.” Still, a large number of individuals continue to live in poverty or just above it. Poverty has turned into a taboo topic that can attract the government’s ire due to the nation’s dwindling economic prospects and the people’s rising fear about the future.
Videos depicting elderly, crippled, and children crying are prohibited.
The New York Times claims that a government eager to keep any discussion of China positive is to blame for the ban. The Communist Party boasts about how many individuals it has helped escape poverty over the past 40 years, but it is silent about how it has forced the entire country into extreme poverty under Mao Zedong.
The party uses poverty reduction as a badge of honour to assert its legitimacy. China’s social safety net is woefully inadequate, and the government is determined to stifle any discussion of the challenges that the poor face, despite the country’s rise as an economic superpower.
The top news story when searching for the Chinese word “pinkun,” or poverty, on the largest news website in the nation, qq.com, is about studies indicating that it is the fourth highest cause of mortality in the United States. According to The New York Times, the mainstream media rarely covers China’s systematic roots of poverty.
