Anti-CCP Banners Appear in Beijing After Party Plenum

Photo of the banners in Sanlitun, Beijing. Credit: Jennifer Zeng

Shortly after the conclusion of the Fourth Plenary Session of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, two white banners appeared in the Sanlitun district of Beijing. The banners contained explicit criticism of the Communist Party and called for fundamental political reforms.

The Banners

The first banner read: “The essence of the Communist Party is an anti-human cult that will bring endless disasters upon China.” The second banner contained a call for political pluralism: “End the party ban, allow freedom to form political parties, free competition, free choice, and build a new China of freedom, humanity, and the rule of law.”

Security personnel quickly removed the banners. According to reports, the person responsible was arrested. Chinese state media have released no information about the identity or fate of the individual involved.

Pattern of Solitary Protests

The incident fits a pattern of solitary, high-visibility protests by individual dissidents who use banners or projections to challenge the rule of the Communist Party. Observers note that the intervals between such protests are “getting shorter,” while the messages remain consistent: freedom, democracy, and an end to CCP rule.

The most iconic action in this series took place on 13 October 2022, when Peng Lifa hung banners on the Sitong Bridge in Beijing. His message demanded reforms and the removal of Xi Jinping, just three days before the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party. Peng was immediately arrested and his current whereabouts remain unknown. Time Magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2023.

More recent examples include a projection protest in Chongqing in August 2025, in which an activist remotely activated a projector from the United Kingdom that displayed anti-CCP slogans on a building, and pro-democracy banners hung from a bridge in Chengdu in April 2025 bearing the text “Without political system reform, there will be no national rejuvenation.”

Systematic Suppression of Dissent

The swift removal of the banners and arrest of the person responsible illustrate the systematic suppression of political dissent in China. Individual protesters who openly criticize the Communist Party routinely disappear into police custody without transparency about their whereabouts or legal status.

This form of resistance, despite the severe consequences, demonstrates the ongoing desire among some Chinese citizens for fundamental political reforms and respect for basic human rights such as freedom of expression and association.