CHINA’S largest mega-city, with a population of 32 million and covering a region more extensive than Ireland, has gained a reputation as a smog-filled surveillance society.
Chongqing, which churns out over half of the world’s laptops, is a tech powerhouse – but critics say it hides a dark, dystopian underbelly.
Earlier this year, nearly 28,000 cameras and numerous high-tech sensors were introduced in a comprehensive operation to monitor residents continuously, as reported by Radio Free Asia.
The urban design of the Chinese city contributes to its unsettling ambiance, featuring towering concrete structures, complex multi-layered roads, and metro lines that pass directly through residential buildings.
Influencer Hugh Chongqing gave his TikTok followers rare tours of the futuristic city:
“In Chongqing, we never know what floor we’re on,” he says.
“It looks like I’m on normal square: the street is over there. But if we go there [to the edge] now we’re on the 22nd floor.
“But if we use the elevator on the square, it says we’re on the 12th floor.
“Then we take the elevator to the eighth floor, walk through this garage, and then we will be on the street.
“Go inside the building on the right, it says we’re on the 13th floor.”
Due to the city’s high density, architecture and persistent fog, residents reportedly live in near-total darkness.
TikToker Jackson Lu said “sunlight is a luxury” for those who live in Chongqing’s lower floors.
Influencer Janet Newenham, who recently explored Chongqing, described a surreal city where wartime bunkers from WW2 and towering concrete buildings co-exist.
The city’s dense construction has even created its own microclimate, resulting in high humidity and sweltering temperatures that can reach up to 40 degrees Celsius.
For years, the city has been under constant surveillance through China’s “Sharp Eyes” program, launched in 2015 to combat crime.
It is named after a quote from China’s former dictator Mao Zedong that “the people have sharp eyes” when looking out for neighbours not living up to Communist values.
Chongqing is also a major hub for laptop production – the computer hardware company HP set up its base there in 2009.
Dubbed China‘s “Cyberpunk city”, the city is home to tech giants like Foxconn, Quanta Computer, Lenovo and Asus.
In 2021, Dahlia Peterson, research analyst at Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology, told The Sun: “China is developing an Orwellian-style state.
“Domestically, the most frightening part is that many people inside China remain unaware of the true scope of surveillance, and still welcome it as a source of ‘security’.
“In programs such as Sharp Eyes, local governments nationwide have even successfully convinced citizens to take part in surveilling each other. “
But Peterson explained that not just the state but the citizens themselves keep a close eye on each other.
“Unlike prior programs, Sharp Eyes places surveillance capabilities in citizens’ hands and encourages their direct participation.
“This strategy echoes the surveillance mechanisms of the Cultural Revolution ( 1966 until 1976), the period from which Sharp Eyes derives its name,” she said.
