Public Discontent in China Grows as CCP Wraps Up Fourth Plenum

State media touted economic progress, while Chinese people have described worsening hardship, political contradictions, and fading public trust in Xi’s rule.

Chinese paramilitary police officers patrol on Tiananmen Square before the opening session of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 5, 2025. Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images

As China’s Communist Party (CCP) concluded its Fourth Plenum on Oct. 23, state media launched a full-scale propaganda campaign praising the meeting’s official communiqué.

While state media touted economic progress, citizens and observers described worsening hardship, political contradictions, and fading public trust in Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s rule.