Beijing Tightens Security Ahead of Fifth Plenum as Petitioners Report Detentions

Reports of petitioners being detained and forcibly removed from public spaces are circulating online as Beijing tightens security ahead of a major gathering taking place later this month.

The fifth plenary session of the Chinese Communist Party’s 20th (CCP) Central Committee is slated to take place in Beijing from Oct. 26 to 29, according to an official announcement by state media. The meeting is expected to focus on Party governance and comes ahead of next year’s national Party congress.

In the weeks leading up to the gathering, netizens have posted videos that they say show intensified efforts to remove petitioners and other perceived sources of instability from the capital.

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Man taken away on Beijing subway

One widely circulated video appears to show several police officers surrounding a man inside a Beijing subway car and attempting to pull him toward the door. The man clings to a vertical pole and asks: “Why should I get off with you?” A female passenger then challenges the officers by asking, “Under what law are you asking him to get off? You need to explain it. There are procedures for law enforcement!”

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Other passengers can be heard questioning whether auxiliary police officers had authority to conduct targeted identity checks. “You’re auxiliary police. What law-enforcement authority do you have right now? You don’t have enforcement authority!” one passenger says. Another asks, “Are you selectively enforcing the law or what? If you’re checking people, then check the whole carriage.”

Social-media posts described the man as a petitioner from Guangdong Province and said officers did not show legal documents before whisking him away.

Woman forced into vehicle

Another video posted Oct. 6 shows a woman being surrounded by several men on a Beijing street before being lifted by her arms and legs and carried into a waiting vehicle. The woman can be heard shouting “gangsters,” while a bystander cries out, “They’re killing someone!” The men also appear to try to stop witnesses from filming.

The account that uploaded the video claimed the men were local security personnel or individuals tasked with intercepting petitioners before they could bring complaints to authorities in Beijing.

The incidents come as Chinese authorities have strengthened rules governing the country’s petition system, known as “xinfang,” which allows citizens to submit grievances over government misconduct and unresolved disputes.

Human rights watchdog Safeguard Defenders reported on Oct. 6 that new rules introduced over the summer place particular emphasis on petitioning in Beijing and give public-security authorities a larger role in handling people who repeatedly bring complaints to the capital. Human rights lawyers cited by the group said the changes could increase pressure on petitioners.

Petitioners have long complained of being intercepted, detained, or returned to their home provinces before major political meetings or sensitive anniversaries. Authorities commonly refer to such measures as maintaining social stability, or “weiwen” in Chinese.

Security tightened across the capital

Additional social-media claims in recent days have alleged increased identity checks, monitoring around central Beijing, and scrutiny of mobile phones and VPN software. Some posts have also claimed that security personnel have been stationed near pedestrian bridges and high-rise buildings and that access to certain areas has been tightened.

What is clear is that the Fifth Plenum is approaching under heightened political sensitivity. The Sept. 21 Politburo announcement said the meeting would examine how to strengthen “full and rigorous Party self-governance,” with an emphasis on centralized leadership and discipline.

Against that backdrop, the viral videos have renewed attention to a longstanding contradiction in China’s petition system: citizens are formally permitted to seek redress through official channels, yet petitioners who travel to Beijing frequently report encountering surveillance, interception, and detention before their complaints can reach central authorities.