COVID rage and blank pieces of paper: Exactly what's happening in China right now.

What's happening in China right now is unprecedented, with protests like those currently underway unseen in the communist nation for decades. 

During the 1989 Tiananmen Square demonstrations, where reportedly as many as 10,000 people were killed, protesters were calling for greater freedom of speech and less censorship. They were spurred on by the death of a prominent politician, Hu Yaobang, who'd overseen economic development and social change in the country (much to his party's distaste).

Remember this photo? The iconic 'tank man' image has become synonymous with the 1989 protests. Image: Getty.

In 2022, the core wants remain the same. But this time, they've been sparked by COVID restrictions that remain among the strictest in the world. 

As protests once again turn violent on the streets of China, here's everything we know. 

A country still pursuing COVID zero.

Right now, China is still isolating every infected person, with strict lockdowns imposed even if only a handful of COVID cases are detected. Businesses and schools are shut down, and the restrictions remain in place until no new infections are reported. 

It means tens of millions are still living under some kind of lockdown, while the rest of the world adopts a 'living with the virus' model. 

Epidemic control workers patrol locked down areas of Beijing on November 29, 2022. Image: Kevin Frayer/Getty.

To ensure compliance, Chinese state television has censored outside media like the World Cup coverage, to remove shots of maskless crowds in packed stadiums as hundreds remain under strict controls.

Photos and footage from the opening ceremony in Qatar managed to get through to users on Chinese social media platforms, sparking anger amongst those still contained to the four walls of their house.

On Monday the country recorded 40,052 new cases amongst a population of 1.4 billion. 

Three deaths have been reported in recent days, bringing the country's official death toll to 5,229 (yes, that's their overall count for the whole of the pandemic).

Their strict rules have seen the death toll remain competitively low, but it's come at an extreme cost.

The growing unrest.

As the restrictions and lockdowns drag on, local authorities and businesses have been turning to extreme measures like forcing workers to sleep inside factories so they can work while quarantined. 

Reuters reports General Motors asked its staff in Shanghai to sleep on the floor earlier this year, while other companies have enforced "closed loop" arrangements whereby workers live and work in bubbles away from the public.

There have also been reports of hunger, as locked down regions deal with dwindling medicine and daily necessities. 

"It's been 15 days, we are out of flour, rice, eggs. From days ago, we run out of milk for kids," one resident in western Xinjiang told the BBC in October. 

But the catalyst behind the protests was an apartment block fire in Urumqi that killed 10 people, including multiple children, on November 24.

Protesters claim fire engines had been blocked by pandemic control barriers or by cars stranded after their owners were put in quarantine. Terrified residents could be seen hanging from windows, while doors to their homes remained locked shut from the outside with wire. The building entrance was also barricaded. 

The protest against the fire that killed 44 people in Urumqi has spread all over China - China has not seen this mass protest since 1989! pic.twitter.com/T1U7UgfswE

— Ashok Swain (@ashoswai) November 27, 2022

Videos circulated on social media showed an arc of water from a distant fire truck falling short of the fire.

Locals could be seen shouting at guards, chanting "end the lockdown" and China's national anthem with the lyric, "Rise up, those who refuse to be slaves". 

Tensions were already at breaking point in Urumqi, where many of the four million residents have been barred from leaving their homes for more than 100 days. 

The significance of the white pieces of paper.

On the weekend, hundreds of people marched in the streets in dozens of cities across China including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu, with many calling for Xi Jinping - who has been in power since 2012 - to step down. 

"We hope to end the lockdown," said 28-year-old Shi at a candlelight vigil in Beijing late on Sunday. "We want to live a normal life. We should all bravely express our feelings."

Protests have been part vigil for the lives lost in the fire, part protest against strict COVID rules. Image: Getty/Anadolu Agency.

Publically defying Xi is almost unheard of in China, with authorities reportedly tracking down those who have dared to show their faces.

The most widely used symbol in the demonstrations has been a blank sheet of paper. It symbolises censorship. 

To stop people talking about the protests, words like "Shanghai" and "Urumqi" have been added to a list of censored search terms on platforms like Weibo. Protesters instead turned to using terms like "white paper" and "A4", but they too have now been banned.

Shiyi attended a protest in Shanghai on Sunday and told the ABC he saw police "beating people on the side of the road."

Protesters have also been witnessed being dragged away by their collars, with scores arrested including a BBC journalist who was covering the demonstrations. 

Video on Monday night showed a steady stream of tanks driving through the eastern city of Xuzhou, sparking fears of a repeat of the scenes from Tiananmen Square - where protestors were gunned down in the street. 

#Tanks spotted tonight in #Xuzhou city #CCPChina. Don’t know what they are up to, or whether they’re related to #ChinaProtests #ChinaUprising #BlankPapersRevolution #WhitePaperRevolution in #China pic.twitter.com/iLjlMfIqyQ

— Jennifer Zeng 曾錚 (@jenniferzeng97) November 28, 2022

Despite a heavy police presence across protest sites, demonstrators defiantly continued to share their opposition. 

As BBC World Affairs Editor John Simpson told News Channel, "It's starting to get to be a national movement, not just something city by city, and state by state." 

Feature image: Getty/Mamamia.