Chronicles of Modern China
Objective bilingual archive of Chinese history from 1912 to the present
Recent Historical Events
View all →Abrupt End of Zero-COVID Policy
After nearly three years of strict pandemic controls, China dismantled its zero-COVID policy within days, removing testing requirements, quarantine mandates, and travel restrictions; the policy adjustment triggered a large-scale Omicron wave that independent epidemiological estimates suggest caused over one million deaths.
SocialWhite Paper Protests
Following a deadly fire in an Ürümqi apartment block, spontaneous protests erupted across Chinese cities with demonstrators holding blank white sheets of paper as a symbol of censorship. Weeks later, the government announced the removal of major COVID control measures, a policy adjustment widely interpreted as a response to the demonstrations.
Social20th Party Congress: Xi Jinping Secures Third Term
In October 2022, the 20th National Congress confirmed Xi Jinping for a third term as General Secretary, breaking the two-term convention that had formed since Jiang Zemin stepped down in 2002. All seven members of the new Politburo Standing Committee were newly elected at the congress, with no carryover from the previous two standing committees.
PoliticalCommon Prosperity Campaign
In August 2021, Xi Jinping designated "common prosperity" as a core policy goal at the tenth meeting of the Central Financial and Economic Affairs Commission, followed by a systematic regulatory crackdown on technology platforms, tutoring companies, online gaming, and celebrity culture that wiped hundreds of billions of dollars from Chinese markets.
EconomicChinese Communist Party Centenary
The CPC held a mass ceremony in Tiananmen Square marking its centenary; Xi Jinping declared "complete victory" in eliminating absolute poverty and warned that foreign forces who dared challenge China would "have their heads bashed bloody against a Great Wall of steel." In November, the Party adopted its third historical resolution in 100 years, elevating Xi's historical status to that of Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping.
PoliticalHong Kong National Security Law
Bypassing Hong Kong's own legislature, Beijing enacted the National Security Law for Hong Kong — criminalizing secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion with foreign forces, with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment — following the 2019 protest movement. Critics argued the law effectively ended the 'one country, two systems' framework.
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