Censorship and tanks in banks, welcome to China
Money warfare. (Photo: Freepik)
Tanks vs. ATMs
Remember when we said that the global economy is starting to look like a warzone? What’s happening in China right now is turning that thought into reality.
Currently, banks in China have multiple tanks from the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) on their front doors to protect them from the escalating anger of protesters.
The Henan branch of the Bank of China recently announced that the customer funds they are holding are “investment items” therefore, no one can withdraw their money anymore.
A lot of angry homebuyers are now gearing up, pitchforks in hand, as they threaten to stop paying mortgages, leaving them with unfinished houses.
Ben Hillman, Director of the Australian Centre on China in the World at ANU said, "When you buy off the plan—and most people don't know this—in most cases you’re paying up front for the whole property before it's built.”
This type of problem isn’t exactly new to China. Since April, multiple banks have been frozen which has caused ¥40 billion to go missing. That’s about $9 billion missing from the people—out of nowhere. The residents were told that they don’t have access to their own bank accounts because of a “system upgrade” and gave no reassurance when access would return. This was an announcement given by an unnamed officer, by the way.
According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP), Yuzhou Xinminsheng Village Bank, Shangcai Huimin County Bank, Zhecheng Huanghuai Community Bank and New Oriental Country Bank of Kaifeng in Henan province, and Guzhen Xinhuaihe Village Bank in the neighboring Anhui province have all followed with similar issues.
It’s like letting a child work hard to earn candies and once they finally get it, you swipe it out of their hands.
That is, of course, a more tame scenario. But the reality is, what’s happening right now is painting a very ugly reminder for Chinese locals. On June 4, 1989, student protestors gathered in Beijing's Tiananmen Square. One thing led to another, and today, what happened back in ‘89 is known as the Tiananmen Square massacre.
You didn't see anything
Whatever is happening over there, someone from China doesn’t want you seeing it. There have been multiple cases wherein images, videos, and even the hashtag #stopmortgagepayments have been removed or censored from the internet.
It’s no secret that China has one of the strictest media censorship laws in the world but if what’s currently happening with the banks is a severe issue that is affecting countless individuals who can’t afford it, why act like nothing happened?
Ben Hillman, Associate Professor and Interim Director of the Australian Centre on China in the World claims that fear is the main driver of the censorship. "Social media changes the dynamic and increases the chances to amplify the protest and for it to spread ... That's something that terrifies the [Chinese Communist] Party."
It’s both an economic and safety issue for the residents of China. Trying to hide it won’t do them any favors. Based on the fact that I am writing about it now and you are reading this, I’d say they can’t always hide things forever.
If for some reason the links here don’t work anymore or this is deleted off the face of the internet, you’ll know why.
