The police response came after several days of costumed partygoers migrating from one spot to another to evade authorities, as neighborhoods took measures to clamp down on this year's celebrations. Authorities didn't want the Western holiday to be used to mock the Chinese regime like in years past, so police spent the weekend dispersing crowds and hauling away people who showed up to parks to celebrate to "maintain good social order and public image," the New York Post reported.
"The government doesn't want any counternarratives or disguised social commentaries that poke fun at or may be seen as protesting against the regime," Nanyang Technological University professor Dylan Loh told the Wall Street Journal, explaining why police cracked down on the holiday this year.
Last Halloween, one of the first public celebrations in the post-Covid era, residents flocked to downtown Shanghai in droves to release their frustrations toward the CCP. Some residents donned costumes that conveyed defiance, such as white biohazard suits or surveillance cameras. But this year authorities were more prepared, and the streets of Shanghai were much quieter. At least one person wearing a Trump mask on Saturday was seen being chased away by police, per the WSJ.
"As we left the park, we were told to take off all our headgear. We were told everyone leaving from that exit could not be costumed," one resident told the BBC. "Shanghai is not supposed to be like this. It has always been very tolerant."
While Shanghai is known for being more freedom-oriented than the rest of China, authorities chose to deny residents space this year in order to quell any potential protests.
