China has made headlines again this month in regard to renewed anti-COVID lockdown protests.
The tech giant Apple has also made headlines in their role in suppressing these protests in favor of the Communist controlled Chinese government — something their CEO Tim Cook appears to silently support.
While population dense China has had far fewer reported cases of COVID related deaths than the United States, the CCP controlled government has continued enacting increasingly draconian COVID policies.
According to Yahoo News, 10 Chinese citizens burnt to death in their own apartment complex last week when a fire broke out; the doors of this apartment were locked from the outside, preventing any escape from a gruesome death.
While these horrific deaths inspired many protests across dozens of Chinese cities and universities, zero-COVID lockdown policies are not the only grievances being shouted by the protesters.
According to CNN, a common sight among dozens of large-scale protests are Chinese citizens holding up blank sheets of paper to their faces to bring attention to the CCP’s heavy-handed censorship of citizen’s online speech and access to information.
Another striking commonality among the protests and demonstrations is the cry, “give me liberty or give me death,” which alludes to the American Revolution.
These words were spoken by colonial politician, Patrick Henry, during a speech he made to the Second Virginia Convention in 1775 just prior to the American Revolution and war with England.
Such powerful words are rarely found among demonstrations simply disgruntled with temporary lock down measures.
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The vigor and rhetoric of these Chinese citizens signify a mass discontent with the CCP and President Xi as a whole.
Apple’s head executive Tim Cook embodies the phrase, “silence speaks volumes” when confronted by a Fox News correspondent this week regarding his company’s role in suppressing the Chinese people.
🚨WATCH: Apple CEO Tim Cook ignores our questions on China as zero-COVID lockdown protests rage in the country. Full video 👇🏻 pic.twitter.com/m0NpgRN6U4
— Hillary Vaughn (@hillary__vaughn) December 1, 2022
Cook appeared very small as he remained completely silent and attempted to hide behind his staff while Hillary Vaughn asked questions any freedom loving American should have been able to quickly answer.
Vaughn asked Cook, “Do you have any reaction to the factory workers that were beaten and detained for protesting COVID lockdowns?”
Cook remained silent.
Vaughn also asked, “Do you regret restricting AirDrop access that protesters used to evade surveillance from Chinese government?”
Cook remained silent.
“Do you think it’s problematic to do business with the Communist Chinese Party when they suppress human rights?” Vaughn continued.
Cook remained silent.
Tim Cook on the Hill, via @hillary__vaughn: pic.twitter.com/4Fldolz69A
— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) December 1, 2022
Apple was found to have heavily restricted the iPhone “AirDrop” capability from protester’s phones during these demonstrations, making it incredibly difficult for protesters to communicate or distribute uncensored literature.
This is not the first time that Apple has aided the CCP in suppression of its citizens’ freedom of speech.
According to a 2021 article by the New York Times, the same Tim Cook who continually lauds the security of Apple’s data centers, turned over control of various data centers in China to the Chinese government.
“Chinese state employees physically manage the computers. Apple abandoned the encryption technology it used elsewhere after China would not allow it. And the digital keys that unlock information on those computers are stored in the data centers they’re meant to secure,” the Times reported.
“Mr. Cook often talks about Apple’s commitment to civil liberties and privacy. But to stay on the right side of Chinese regulators, his company has put the data of its Chinese customers at risk and has aided government censorship in the Chinese version of its App Store. After Chinese employees complained, it even dropped the ‘Designed by Apple in California’ slogan from the backs of iPhones,” the Times continued.
Sadly, the same country that Patrick Henry’s words came from is no longer the same nation that freedom loving Chinese citizens are modeling their protests after under this Biden administration.
The White House released a lukewarm statement on Wednesday in regard to the protests, simply portraying the brutal zero-COVID measures of the CCP as ineffective instead of tyrannical.
Notice what they don’t say: that they don’t condone lockdowns? This is not a rebuke. This is a weak statement. https://t.co/LXl23j8HbN
— Kyle Lamb (@kylamb8) November 28, 2022
It is disheartening to see the people of China attempting to throw off the chains of an oppressive, Communist government with words of Revolutionary War heroes on their lips, while our spineless leaders desecrate their memory with inaction and apathy.
It may be time to reconsider Apple as your main phone provider if corrupt executives like Cook continue to silently support oppressive regimes like the CCP and their goal to silence their own people.
